NOLA.com: Times-Picayune Updates:
Insurance costs for Louisiana residents and farmers will increase by 50% but will cover substantially less (things that actually cause damage and the need for insurance, for example). Hurricane damage? Not covered. Hail? Nope.

I like to look on the bright side of things. Here's my attempt for this one - since the local economies have been devastated by the aftereffects of Rita and Katrina, people probably could not have afforded the rates at the original levels, so they aren't actually any worse off.

My favorite quote:

"'The only way we survived those events was reinsurance,' VanDreumel said. 'The only reason we're doing this is the cost of reinsurance.' "

In other words - we had to pay out a ton of money for last year's claims. Now we have to get it back from these horrible people to whom we paid it.

Argh.