In the worst-case scenario, Florida becomes Greece, with hurricanes exhausting its resources, forcing more and more borrowing on less and less attractive terms.

Robert Hartwig, president of an insurance industry trade group, on the concern that Florida's state-run insurers won't be able to cover people if a major hurricane or back-to-back hurricanes hit the region. Scientists say there's a 13 percent higher-than-average chance that Florida will be hit by a major hurricane this year.