National Underwriter Life & Health Magazine January 2012
Features
Paystub Lifebuoys: Benefits for the Other 99%
The financial seas are looking pretty rough out there. Sales heave up and down, CNBC is a howling gale of bad news, and Greece keeps banging about the economy like a loose tackle locker. Amid the maelstrom, the traditional major medical plan is taking on water in a bad way,...
Features
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The Year Ahead
As the U.S. economy continues its slow-growth recovery, market-watchers remain cautiously optimistic that life insurance professionals and product manufacturers can preserve the sales gains achieved in 2011.
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Company Man
Many veteran agents recall a time that was much more career-oriented, when they were recruited, trained and supported more. As that changed to a more independent system, they feel that something got lost in translation. LIMRA has noted a rising interest in career distribution, something New York Life has never...
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Rogue's Gallery
Who or what are the top 10 rogue forces that are making things more difficult than they need to be for the life and health insurance industry? National Underwriter names names.
News
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State vs. Federal, Round One
Insurance representatives on December 9 agreed at a Washington conference that the new Federal Insurance Office (FIO) is an “important single point of contact” at the federal level on insurance issues, especially international ones.
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State vs. Federal, Round Two
Rep. Steve Stivers (R-Ohio) A panel of the House Financial Services Committee (FSC) reported out on December 9 legislation to the full committee that would significantly restrict the ability of federal regulators to get financial information from insurance companies.
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State vs. Federal, Round Three
Following a FIO conference on the nature of insurance regulation, and news of legislation aiming to strip federal offices of their power to regulate insurers, the American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI) said on December 14 that progress has been slow in making the state regulatory system uniform across all...
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Kaiser: Americans Still Conflicted About Health Reform
Many Americans despise the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (PPACA), but large majorities support almost every PPACA provision that pollsters ask about.
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Many New York Small Businesses May Crave an Exchange
New York’s small business owners are ready to embrace health insurance exchanges as a way to provide insurance to their employees, and may even provide a boon to struggling small business owners, according to a recent survey.
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Life Insurers Face Double Whammy in New York
Life insurers based in New York have already made $52.6 million in payments to 7,934 beneficiaries as a result of the New York Department of Financial Services’ probe of insurer unclaimed property practices.
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DOL Faces Bi-Partisan Pushback Against Proposed Fiduciary Standard
Fifty-five House Republicans joined 30 House Democrats in early December to request that the Department of Labor significantly narrow its definition of “fiduciary” in a rule the agency is currently drafting that would impact the sale of retirement products.
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ING Group to Take $1.1 Billion Charge Against Fourth Quarter Earnings
ING Group, N.V., Amsterdam, Netherlands, announced in early December an estimated $1.1 billion (EUR $0.9 billion) earnings charge against the fourth quarter results of its U.S. closed variable annuity block of business. The adjustment includes a charge to “restore the reserve adequacy to the 50% confidence level for the US...
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Sun Life to Discontinue VA and Individual Life Sales in U.S.
A Canada-based life insurer is exiting the variable annuities and individual life products markets in the U.S. not quite a week after ING announced it would be taking a huge charge as it too exited the U.S. variable annuities market.
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Policyholders Getting Smarter, Leading to Charges for VA Products, Says Moody’s
Charges related to changes in policyholder assumptions on variable annuities with guaranteed benefits may emerge among life insurance companies in the U.S., putting a dent in earnings and capital, according to a new Moody’s report in the wake of ING’s announcement that it would take a 4th-quarter charge to earnings.
Editor's Note
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Everybody Knows
The town where my grandparents lived was largely settled by Irish immigrants, and to this day, people there still speak with a hint of an Irish lilt. One day, we encountered a drunk man on the sidewalk, of whom my disapproving Nana said, “Not every Irish here is a drunk,...
Opinion
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Time to Think About Revising Your Compensation Model
Come 2012, be prepared for more product disclosure requirements. Be ready also to chuck big commissions on sales.
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FeedBack
Special Features
2013 Outlook As we move into a transition year, check out LifeHealthPro's conjectures for the life, annuities, health and disability markets.
100 Best Sales & Marketing Ideas Whether you want ideas for referrals, generating leads or just listening to your clients better, we have the sales and marketing tips you need.
The Complete ELNY Saga For more than two decades, the Executive Life Insurance Company of New York (ELNY) has been bled for billions of dollars while languishing in a state-imposed purgatory.
Life Insurance A-Z This alphabetical-themed infographic will help your clients feel more comfortable discussing life insurance protection concepts.
2012 Advisor of the Year Through a very thorough nomination process we look to find a top producer who is a true cornerstone of a community.
Senior Survey 2011 In this special section, find out how seniors build their nest egg, make an estate plan, finance their health care and where they live.
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