Bailout funds from TARP move to insurance industry

It looked like the balance in the TARP fund would improve as banks paid back the loans they received late last year. But taxpayers will not be that lucky. Insurance companies have been lobbying for aid and now the Treasury plans to give it to them, too.

The federal government must have at least some concern that the failure of a major insurance company would set off a cascade of events that could harm the financial and credit markets. In an attempt to prevent this, it has committed $22 billion to the industry.