National briefs

LAS VEGAS (AP) -- Nevada's only top-level trauma center was preparing to reopen Saturday morning, 10 days after it shut down because of soaring malpractice insurance rates, officials said.

About 10 to 15 private practice orthopedic surgeons have agreed to become Clark County employees for 45 days, meaning they will be covered by the hospital's $50,000 liability cap.

Last month, the American Medical Association identified Nevada as one of 12 states facing a crisis in medical malpractice coverage.

Banks file lawsuits against WorldCom

NEW YORK (AP) -- A group of 25 banks is accusing WorldCom Inc. of defrauding them of nearly $2.5 billion six weeks before publicly disclosing $4 billion in accounting irregularities.

The banks' lawsuit, filed in Manhattan's State Supreme Court Friday, included a request for an order to immediately freeze $2.65 billion of WorldCom assets. Justice Helen Freedman, after oral argument, denied the request and scheduled a hearing for July 16.

WorldCom got the money by way of a credit agreement signed June 8, 2001, with 27 banks, including Citigroup.

Sprint to cut 1,200 jobs

OVERLAND PARK, Kan. (AP) -- Sprint Corp., which operates the nation's third biggest long-distance telephone service, said Friday it will cut about 1,200 jobs, or 1.5 percent of its work force, to lower costs.

The company said the job cuts will come from the company's global markets group, which includes the struggling long-distance business.

Like others in the industry, Sprint has struggled to cut its costs to boost its earnings and compete more effectively with bigger long-distance operators AT&T and MCI. Sprint's global markets group reported a $75 million operating loss in the first quarter.

Health experts alarmed at spread of West Nile virus

NEW ORLEANS (AP) -- The hospitalization of three men with the potentially deadly West Nile virus -- the first human cases reported this year -- have experts alarmed at the infection's rapid spread since it first appeared in New York in 1999.

The men, all living in towns east of Baton Rouge, were hospitalized with the mosquito-borne virus this week.

Dr. Anthony Marfin with the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention said the Louisiana cases are the first reported to the CDC in 2002.

"The likelihood is that this virus will cross the entire country," said Gary Belfamo, a public health veterinarian and assistant state epidemiologist in Louisiana.