Washington State has approved the state's first fraud bureau andadded a fraud prosecutor, according to the Coalition AgainstInsurance Fraud.

Washington now joins other states that have adopted acoordinated approach to fraud fighting. Forty states plusWashington, D.C., have now created insurance fraud bureaus throughlegislation, said Howard Goldblatt, director of government affairsfor the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud.

Adding an insurance fraud prosecutor is an important movebecause it ensures a steady focus on insurance swindles, Goldblattsaid. The new law also clarifies that insurers can be fraudvictims. This allows insurers to receive restitution as victims ofswindles.

Among the other key provisions is a mandate that requiresinsurance applications and claim forms to carry language warning offraud. The warnings put would-be swindlers on notice and the signeddocuments provide clear evidence of fraud during prosecutions.

The new law takes effect July 1, but it is unclear when the unitwill begin operations. It will be funded by the insurancedepartment's operating budget. Insurers will not be assessed a feeto cover the unit's operating costs.