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Helping public-sector clients keep their books straight

Small software firm here markets product designed to meet state's standards

March 24, 2011

Small cities and other local governments throughout Washington and parts of Oregon rely on software that's designed and sold by a relatively young Spokane company, BIAS Software Inc., to track daily management and financial operations. Company a

Numerica's net income rises dramatically in 2010

Credit union more than doubled earnings; loans, deposits, assets also grew

March 24, 2011

Chey Scott

Numerica Credit Union, of Spokane, says it more than doubled its earnings in 2010 compared with the year earlier, with increases in its deposits, loans, and assets.The credit union reported 2010 net income of $11.3 million, a 249 percent from it

STCU's net income leaps, loans increase 7 percent

Credit union averaged more than 1,000 new accounts a month in '10

March 24, 2011

Kim Crompton

Spokane Teachers Credit Union says it posted net income of $16.2 million in 2010, up nearly double from $9.1 million in 2009, and also had decent gains in loans and deposits, despite the continuing economic slump.The credit union—Spokane's

Retirement-planning tool created here

Vickerman & Driscoll seeks to assist clients with online "bucket" system for figuring needed income

March 24, 2011

Treva Lind

Spurred by the 2008 financial collapse, Spokane-based Vickerman & Driscoll Financial Advisors Inc. has developed a new retirement planning tool that breaks up post-employment income into a monthly spending plan instead of focusing on a lump-sum can

Financial companies lose trust

Study finds nearly half of those surveyed trust industry less than in '09

March 24, 2011

Despite a U.S. economic recovery from the depths of the financial crisis, nearly half of individual investors trusted financial-services companies less in 2010 than the previous year. Edelman's second annual Trust in U.S. Financial Services that

Community reinvested

Banks pursue lending targets despite declines in loan demand

March 24, 2011

Mike McLean

Though credit is tight and demand for loans is down, bankers here are looking for opportunities to ensure that they provide financial services fairly throughout their communities in accordance with the federal Community Reinvestment Act.The CRA

Antioxidants might cause fertility problems, study suggests

Though typically regarded as healthy, nutrients might interfere with ovulation

March 24, 2011

Typically viewed as healthy, antioxidants might have an unexpected side effect—they may cause fertility problems in women, suggests new research by Professor Nava Dekel and her team, of the Israel-based Weizmann Institute of Science's of a

Coffee linked to decreased risk of stroke in women

Long-term Swedish study shows health benefits for moderate java drinkers

March 24, 2011

Low or no coffee consumption was associated with an increased risk of stroke in a study of 34,670 women, ages 49 to 83, followed for an average just over 10 years. It's too soon to change coffee-drinking habits, but the study should ease the of is

All elderly women should get bone test, group says

Osteoporosis screening also recommended for women with risk factors

March 24, 2011

In an update to its 2002 recommendation, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force now recommends that all women ages 65 and older be routinely screened for osteoporosis. The task force also recommends that younger women with increased risk for be

Less invasive hysterectomy procedures on increase here

Trend at Spokane-area hospitals said to climb ahead of national curve

March 24, 2011

Mike McLean

Spokane-area physicians are ahead of the national curve in employing minimally invasive techniques rather than open abdominal surgery when performing hysterectomies, two surgeons here say.About 55 percent of hysterectomies at the four major are