Insurance

rivate/public insurance mix is most practical way to achieve universal coverage

2007-10-18T03:11:00.000-07:00

Health insurance reform plans that build on a mix of private and public health insurance, where costs are shared among government, employers, and enrollees would have great potential to move the system to high performance and would be the most practical to implement according to a new report released today by The Commonwealth Fund Commission on a High Performance Health System. Commissioners are a diverse group of leading health policy experts from government, private industry, health care delivery organizations, academia, and professional associations. Affordable, comprehensive health insurance coverage for all Americans is essential to achieving a high performance health system, say the report authors, because coverage helps to ensure access to essential preventive services; improve overall health; cut down on inefficiencies like duplicate medical tests; reduce administrative costs; and eliminate costly uncompensated care for uninsured and underinsured families. However, the way coverage reform plans are designed will be critical to their success and ability to offer all participants access to high-quality, efficient, and equitable health care, according to the analysis, A Roadmap to Health Insurance for All: Principles for Reform, prepared for the Commission by Sara Collins, Assistant Vice President at The Commonwealth Fund and colleagues. The report is the first of three major policy reports the Commission will issue this Fall.

“If we do health reform right, we can get all Americans covered, improve quality and efficiency, and control skyrocketing health care costs,” said Collins.

The report describes how all of the health insurance reform plans now being proposed by presidential candidates and lawmakers fall into one of three general types—tax incentives and individual insurance markets; mixed private-public group insurance with shared responsibility for financing; and public insurance. The report also outlines key principles for health care reform that all Americans should keep in mind as they consider these plans. For example:

-- Provides equitable and comprehensive health insurance to all Americans, regardless of income or health status, in a way that ensures full and equal participation.
-- Provides a minimum, standard benefit floor.
-- Premiums, deductibles, and out-of-pocket costs are affordable relative to family income.
-- Enrollment is automatic and seamless.
-- Provides a choice of health plans or care system; people can keep their current insurance if they so choose.
-- Administrative costs should be reduced and the plans simple to administer. Health risks are pooled across broad groups.
-- Financing should be adequate and the costs shared among federal and state governments, employers, individual households and other stakeholders.
-- Provides equitable and comprehensive health insurance to all Americans, regardless of income or health status, in a way that ensures full and equal participation.
-- Provides a minimum, standard benefit floor.
-- Premiums, deductibles, and out-of-pocket costs are affordable relative to family income.
-- Enrollment is automatic and seamless.
-- Provides a choice of health plans or care system; people can keep their current insurance if they so choose.
-- Administrative costs should be reduced and the plans simple to administer. Health risks are pooled across broad groups.
-- Financing should be adequate and the costs shared among federal and state governments, employers, individual households and other stakeholders.
www.physorg.com

African farmers offered drought insurance

2007-09-29T12:03:00.001-07:00

Insurance giant Swiss Re has launched an initiative to offer African farmers cover against droughts ruining their crop harvests.

The microinsurance industry is expanding, with other firms offering cover for people on low incomes. Zurich Financial Services (ZFS) for example formed a partnership with a Swiss government agency earlier this year.

The microcredit industry started in the late 1970s but has snowballed in recent years as companies have recognised both the benefits of ethical business practices and the opportunity to tap into a new market.

Swiss Re said on Thursday it aimed to provide protection against adverse weather conditions for up to 400,000 people in Ethiopia, Ghana, Kenya, Malawi, Mali, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal, Tanzania and Uganda.

This follows the launch of a $2 million (SFr2.34 million) scheme earlier this month to protect 150,000 farmers in Ethiopia, Kenya and Mali against the economic effects of severe droughts.

"After witnessing the terrible natural catastrophe of the [2004 Indian Ocean] tsunami that brought misery to people who were not insured, we thought about what we could do for people without a lot of capital," Swiss Re spokesman Henner Alms told swissinfo.

"But there is a clear business aspect too. If these solutions for African villagers prove successful, they could be extended elsewhere too."

Sustainability warning

Microinsurance is not a new venture for Swiss Re as the firm had already pioneered weather protection policies in India three years ago.

ZFS has been present in Bolivia since 1999 selling, among other things, life insurance policies that encourage saving by paying out an amount to relatives based on how much the holder had in their bank account.

ZFS entered into a partnership with the Swiss Agency for Cooperation and Development (SDC) and the International Labor Organization (ILO) in February to extend microinsurance for life, property and possessions to Africa, Asia (primarily China) and throughout Latin America.

"We entered into the partnership in order to crystallise this into a real growth and corporate responsibility strategy," ZFS head of microinsurance Brandon Mathews told swissinfo.

Alliance Sud, a group of six leading Swiss development organisations, gave a broad welcome to microfinance in general, but warned that the innovation had to be properly applied to avoid potential pitfalls.

Partnerships crucial

"If you do not offer sustainability along with the cash, then the attitude of the people will change and they will just take the easy money without thinking of the long-term," spokesman Bruno Stöckli told swissinfo.

"Swiss companies need to make sure that local partners are stable enough to handle all this new money coming in," he added.

With this warning in mind, Swiss Re has chosen to work in partnership with NGO Millennium Promise. ZFS will draw on the experience of the SDC while tapping into new markets.

"The SDC works with many of the populations where we should be able to provide these products. They have substantial knowledge built over many years engaging these populations and these markets," Mathews told swissinfo.

www.swissinfo.org

BB&T Insurance Services buys Atlanta agency

2007-09-29T12:02:00.001-07:00

BB&T's insurance arm will buy a two-office metro Atlanta insurance agency, expanding its presence in a lucrative Southeastern market.

BB&T Insurance Services, headquartered in Raleigh, will acquire Sidney O. Smith Inc., which has offices in Gainesville and Alpharetta, Ga., and provides commercial and personal property and casualty coverage to 17,000 clients.

The acquisition will likely close in November, the company said. Terms weren't disclosed.

Sidney O. Smith, the first licensed insurance agent in Georgia, founded his eponymously named agency in 1916. The current majority owners are CEO George D. Jones and President Jim Moore.

Moore will become agency manager following the merger.

BB&T, headquarted in Winston-Salem, is the No. 3 bank in the Triangle by market share. Shares were down 1.2 percent in early afternoon trading Friday to $40.48.

www.bizjournals.com

SeaBright Insurance Holdings Expands Board and Elects Rice

2007-09-29T12:01:00.000-07:00

SeaBright Insurance Holdings, Inc. (Nasdaq: SEAB) has announced that it has elected Michael D. Rice to its Board of Directors. Mr. Rice will fill a newly-created position on the board, bringing the number of directors to seven, including six outside directors. Mr. Rice has proven, long-term experience and expertise in insurance product marketing and distribution. He served for the past 41 years in a variety of senior corporate leadership positions at Aon Corporation, most recently as its Executive Vice President. Mr. Rice had previously served as CEO of several Aon subsidiaries specializing in national distribution of insurance products via independent brokers, wholesale brokerage, managing general underwriters and direct marketing. After a successful and distinguished career, he now plans to retire from Aon. John Pasqualetto, President, Chairman and CEO of SeaBright Insurance Holdings, Inc., said, "Mike Rice is a terrific addition to our expanded Board. We sought a new Director with proven senior executive leadership experience in insurance distribution with a major publicly traded brokerage firm. Mike matches our criteria perfectly. We are indeed fortunate to welcome him to the SeaBright Insurance Holdings Board of Directors.” SeaBright Insurance Holdings, Inc. is an insurance holding company whose wholly owned subsidiary, SeaBright Insurance Company, operates as a specialty underwriter of multi-jurisdictional workers’ compensation insurance. SeaBright Insurance Company distributes its maritime, alternative dispute resolution and state act products through selected independent insurance brokers and through its in-house wholesale broker affiliate, PointSure Insurance Services. SeaBright Insurance Company provides workers’ compensation coverage to employers in selected regions nationwide. To learn more about SeaBright Insurance Company and SeaBright Insurance Holdings, visit our website at www.sbic.com.
http://newsticker.welt.de

Why Does Everyone Bow Down to the Health Insurance Industry?

2007-09-24T12:17:00.000-07:00

Bow your heads and raise the white flags. After facing down the Third Reich, the Japanese Empire, the U.S.S.R., Manuel Noriega and Saddam Hussein, the United States has met an enemy it dares not confront -- the American private health insurance industry.

With the courageous exception of Dennis Kucinich, the Democratic candidates have all rolled out health "reform" plans that represent total, Chamberlain-like, appeasement. Edwards and Obama propose universal health insurance plans that would in no way ease the death grip of Aetna, Unicare, MetLife, and the rest of the evil-doers. Clinton -- why are we not surprised? -- has gone even further, borrowing the Republican idea of actually feeding the private insurers by making it mandatory to buy their product. Will I be arrested if I resist paying $10,000 a year for a private policy laden with killer co-pays and deductibles?

It’s not only the Democratic candidates who are capitulating. The surrender-buzz is everywhere. I heard it from a notable liberal political scientist on a panel in August: We can’t just leap to a single payer system, he said in so many words, because it would be too disruptive, given the size of the private health insurance industry. Then I heard it yesterday from a Chicago woman who leads a nonprofit agency serving the poor: How can we go to a Canadian-style system when the private industry has gotten so “big”?

www.alternet.org

Long term care insurance a good hedge

2007-09-24T12:14:00.000-07:00

It's a good bet that you'll live longer than previous generations in your family. But is it a good bet that you'll be able to afford those extra years?

That depends on how you plan for the future -- both the ordinary costs of living longer, and the extraordinary costs if you need care because of a physical or mental incapacity.

Americans are in denial about this oncoming crisis in costs of care. Maybe that's because we figure the government will come to our aid. Think again. Medicare only partially covers up to 100 days of skilled nursing care. State Medicaid programs will pay for your custodial care -- but only in Medicaid-funded nursing homes that are woefully under-funded.

Relying on Medicaid disqualifies the possibility of care at home or in an assisted living facility -- much more appealing choices. And you'd have those choices if you purchased long term care insurance as you reach age 50, when you are still young and healthy enough to qualify for the best policies at the lowest prices.

One critically important thing to keep in mind when purchasing long term care insurance is that before you can access the benefits, a licensed medical professional must "certify" that you need substantial assistance in performing at least two of six basic activities of daily living (such as dressing, bathing, toileting) or be "cognitively impaired" before the coverage will start paying your costs. You can't simply decide that it would be nice to move into an assisted living facility, and have your insurance pay the costs!

www.suntimes.com

5 ways to get auto insurance discounts

2007-09-20T04:47:00.001-07:00

Just when you thought you'd taken advantage of every discount and shrunk your auto insurance premium to its tiniest, auto insurers are offering more ways to make your bill smaller than ever, and all you have to do is be yourself.

Almost every insurance company gives you a discount if you've had no accidents or tickets in the last three to five years, or if you buy a homeowner's or renter's insurance policy with the same company (multi-line discount), insure more than one car on your auto insurance policy (multi-vehicle discount) or own a car that is equipped with air bags. But some companies also will reward you for your profession, for your age and for using the Internet.

That college degree is worth something

21st Century Group (formerly 20th Century) has found that drivers with degrees in engineering are lower risks than other drivers. If you have a bachelor's degree in any number of engineering or science-related fields -- biochemistry, mathematics or mechanical engineering, for example -- you can get a discount on your auto insurance premium if you buy from them.

21st Century sells auto insurance in Arizona, California, Nevada, Oregon and Washington, and offers the "engineering and scientist" discount in all of those states. If you're a scientist or an engineer with a good driving record, you can save between 10% and 30% on the company's base rate, according to Ric Hill, vice president of corporate relations.

A base rate is the average amount of claims paid plus the insurance company's claims-processing fee. For example, if the company's base rate is $400, you could save between $40 and $120.

"Our company's founder saw that educators, scientists, and engineers have lots of characteristics that seem to show that they're the best drivers," says Hill. "Engineers, for example, being accustomed to dealing with fine details, are somewhat meticulous, which means they take good care of their automobiles." 21st Century found that the same holds true for teachers and other scientists.

Teachers deserve a break

Horace Mann Insurance (which sells auto insurance in every state except Hawaii and New Jersey) offers discounts to teachers who belong to state education associations or the National Education Association (NEA). Horace Mann's discounts start at 8% and are based on some assumptions the company made about teachers: They have a stable occupation, stable employment, and they understand they are under scrutiny by the community.

The discounts are available through Horace Mann or one of its two subsidiaries -- Allegiance Insurance or Teachers Insurance. In addition to Hawaii and New Jersey and New York, the discounts are not available in Georgia, Mississippi, Texas and Washington D.C.

The discount program for teachers who are state association or NEA members started about 15 years ago. Although the auto insurance discounts aren't enough to cover annual association dues, Horace Mann estimates the average household (two cars) and the average insurance discount will pay for about 50% of an association's average dues.

21st Century also offers teachers a break on auto insurance premiums, but only if you're certified by the State of California Commission on Teacher Credentialing, or if you are a full-time college or university professor. Savings for this program range from 10% to 30% of the company's base rate.

Save all you can save in the Army

GEICO offers a 2% to 15% discount to active and retired members of the military. The military discount is available in all states except Georgia, Indiana, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Mississippi, New Jersey, New Mexico, Tennessee and Texas.

Another benefit of buying your auto insurance with GEICO if you're in the military is your ability to drop all coverages except comprehensive if you're shipped overseas. "Most armed service personnel will put their vehicles in storage and we allow them to drop their liability and other coverages while they're out of the country," says Richard Kidd, a retired sergeant major of the Army and assistant vice president for military services at GEICO. Additionally, if Uncle Sam sends you to a country in which the government offers hostile-fire pay, GEICO will knock 25% off your comprehensive bill while your car's in storage.

Drive toward the discounts in your golden years

Remember when a nickel was worth a dime? If so, you're probably eligible for some deep discounts on your auto insurance. The Hartford's AARP Auto Insurance Program offers AARP members the chance to chop their auto insurance bills by as much as 45%.

The AARP program offers drivers a 20% to 25% discount for insuring multiple cars on one policy, a 10% discount for holding both a homeowners and auto insurance policy with The Hartford and 5% savings for staying with the company for more than five years and not having any violations on your driving record.

The Hartford also guarantees that drivers who buy auto insurance through the AARP program will never have their policies canceled except for nonpayment of premium, DUI conviction or loss of license.

Have Internet, can save

Web surfers who want to purchase insurance online can benefit from discounts offered by companies such as Unitrin Direct.

Unitrin will shave $50 off your auto insurance premium if you purchase a policy directly from its Web site. In addition, Unitrin also will give a 10% discount to four-year college graduates under the age of 30. Both discounts are only available in Arizona, Colorado, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Missouri, Nevada, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Texas, Virginia and Wisconsin.

Because of cutthroat competition in the auto insurance market, all you have to do is sniff around a little bit for good deals like these. And although you might not be a professor, teacher, engineer or geologist, you can still save on your auto premiums by being a good driver, having good grades or insuring more than one car.

Bad credit? Insurers will make you pay

2007-09-20T04:46:00.000-07:00

By now you know that you need to keep tabs on your credit history to make a good impression on lenders, landlords and employers. But did you know that your home and auto insurers are also looking?

In most states they're allowed to use your credit information to formulate premiums - and in June the U.S. Supreme Court decided that your carrier doesn't need to tell you if your credit has caused you to pay more.

In concurrent cases against Geico and Safeco, the Justices unanimously agreed that the companies were not wrong in charging certain poor-credit customers more without notifying them.

The impact of the decision: "You are not going to know if your credit score is costing you," says Harvey Rosenfield, founder of the Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights.

How insurance premiums are determined is a recipe long kept secret from consumers. Some 90 percent of home and auto carriers use a score based on credit data as part of that recipe, according to risk-assessment firm Fair Isaac, known for its FICO credit score.

Some insurers buy this so-called credit-based insurance score from Fair Isaac or ChoicePoint, another data provider, or devise their own. One insurer may weigh the score heavily, another not so much.

Industry folks say they're simply using all relevant data. "Studies show that how people manage credit is a good predictor of insurance risk," says Claire Wilkinson of the Insurance Information Institute; in other words, insurers think that if you don't pay your bills, you're likely to file a lot of claims.

Whether that's true or not, your carrier will be peeking at your credit history. So you want to make sure it sees you in the best light (6 ways to kill your credit score).

Make sure insurers have the right info

No matter who devises the score, the original data comes from credit bureaus. So check your credit reports for accuracy.

Get a free copy from each of the three bureaus annually at annualcreditreport.com.

Tell them what they want to hear

Unlike traditional credit scores, insurance scores usually put more weight on prompt bill payment and slightly less on the type of credit you have, says Lamont Boyd, director of product management at Fair Isaac.

But if you follow the same rules for improving your credit score, your insurance credit score should rise as well. In order of importance, says Boyd, they are:

Pay bills on time: Late payments show up for seven years.

Keep revolving balances low: Insurance companies look at how much debt you have relative to available credit.

Keep your oldest credit card: Insurers like folks with well-established lines of credit. Five years is good, 10 ideal.

Don't apply for lots of credit at once: Your score might drop. (You're not penalized for shopping, however; multiple auto or mortgage inquiries within 45 days are considered as one.)

Get rid of miscellaneous cards you don't use: Having too many can hurt your score.

(How to ace your credit score)

Don't settle

So what if your car insurer decides that you no longer deserve that great rate? Thanks to the Supremes, you won't know why you've become such a poor risk or what to do to lower your premium.

Your best option: Shop for a new policy. You can try other companies, an independent agent or an insurance comparison Web site. Since insurers' weightings of your credit-based insurance score can be quite disparate, you're likely as not to find a company that thinks you are peachy.

Auto Insurance agency, Insurance.com, Helps Keep Children Safe This Halloween

2007-09-20T04:45:00.001-07:00

From witches and goblins to pirates and cheerleaders, communities all around the country will soon be invaded by trick-or-treaters of all ages. But did you know that Halloween has the highest rate of child-related pedestrian injuries in the country? In fact, the Safe Kids Worldwide Organization reports that children are four times more likely to suffer a pedestrian-related fatality on Halloween than on any other night of the year.

With a dramatic increase in injury for one night of ghoulish fun, you might be motivated to have your trick-or-treater skip Halloween altogether. But not to worry, Insurance.com, the nation’s largest online auto insurance agency, has come up with some helpful Halloween safety tips and ideas on how to keep your trick-or-treaters safe and sound this Halloween.

Halloween Costumes
Many times, Halloween Costumes do not fit all sizes. Because of this, you will want to make sure that your child’s Halloween Costume fits him or her properly before they head out for the night. Have your child try on their costume a couple weeks before Halloween. This will give you time to see what needs to be altered and make any adjustments to the costume. When evaluating the Halloween costume on your child, make sure to check that:

The Halloween costume is flame-retardant
Shoes fit properly – over-sized shoes can cause your trick-or-treater to fall and hurt themselves
Pant and skirt lengths are above the shoe
Capes, hats and wigs are not too big
Mask or accessories do not block eyesight or hearing

You’ll also want to make sure that your child wears a sensible pair of shoes with his or her Halloween costume. High heels are often hard for children to maneuver in, causing them to trip or fall. While it might not give the costume the full effect, having your little one wear flat shoes is the best and safest idea. Another good idea is to use non-toxic, hypoallergenic makeup instead of a mask. This will ensure nothing is hindering your child’s view while trick-or-treating.

Make a glowing statement this Halloween
Children often get very excited while trick-or-treating and tend to run across yards and streets, which creates a hazard for many drivers. Help make your child more noticeable by adding reflective tape and glowing accessories (such as glow sticks) to your trick-or-treater’s costume.

If your child is going to be a cheerleader or a character that requires a sword, consider getting a Lighted Flashing Power Pom-Poms or Halloween Goblin Sword. Another good idea is to have your child wear glow-in-the dark necklaces, bracelets, pins, rings and headbands. These accessories will definitely help add light to any costume, not to mention that kids love to wear glow-in-the dark products.

Not able to add reflective tape to your trick-or-treater’s costume? Consider having your child carry a reflective bag, such as the Glow-Vestco Halloween Bag, or wearing an accessory such as the Glow-Vestco Halloween Safety Harness. Both of these products have reflective material sewn onto the product and come with clear PVC sleeves that you can insert glow sticks into.

All of the products mentioned above will help make trick-or-treaters more visible to passing motorists and help prevent child-related pedestrian injuries.

Halloween Safety Tips
With Daylight Saving Time occurring on November 4th this year (instead of the last week in October) trick-or-treaters will have a little more daylight to trick-or-treat in. However, this doesn’t mean that safety isn’t still an important issue when it comes to trick-or-treating. To increase Halloween safety, Insurance.com (the nation’s largest online auto insurance agency) recommends:

Attaching an emergency identification card (including the child’s name, address, phone number) discreetly to trick-or-treater’s costume or inside their Halloween bag
Reviewing the trick-or-treater’s phone number and what to do in an emergency with them before they head out
Having a refresher course on how to properly cross the street
And reminding them never to talk to strangers

Halloween Activities
There are many Halloween activities you can do with your children to celebrate Halloween without having to go trick-or-treating around your neighborhood. For instance, many local malls have trick-or-treating or other Halloween activities for children to participate in on or before Halloween. Check with your local mall for details.

If you prefer to participate in a Halloween activity outdoors, then the “Boo at the Zoo” might be a good choice for you. Boo at the Zoo is an event designed especially for kids and offers a safe neighborhood for trick-or-treaters to roam around freely, without having to worry about passing cars. Many zoos around the nation participate in Boo at the Zoo, including the Cleveland Metroparks Zoo in Cleveland, Ohio and the Smithsonian National Zoological Park in Washington, DC. Contact your local zoo to find out if they participate in Boo at the Zoo.

Amusement parks also have Halloween celebrations during the month of October. Some of the more well-known spooky celebrations include Cedar Point’s Halloweekends and Six Flags Fright Fest.

These Halloween safety tips were brought to you by Insurance.com, the leading online auto insurance agency in the country. If you’re in need of auto insurance, or are thinking about switching auto insurance carriers, visit Insurance.com’s auto insurance comparison application. Here, you will be able to evaluate multiple rates from best-in-class auto insurance providers, helping you save time and money on your auto insurance.

Vienna Insurance Group buys majority stake in Albania's Sigma for 16.13 mln eur

2007-09-20T04:37:00.001-07:00

Wiener Staedtische AG (Vienna Insurance Group) said it has bought a majority stake in the Albanian insurance company Sigma Sh.a for 16.13 mln eur.

Vienna Insurance Group said it had bought 75 per cent plus one share in Sigma with an agreement to purchase a further 12.5 pct in the first half of 2011 and the remaining holding in the middle of 2012.

'Sigma is one of the leading insurance companies in Albania and, with its distribution capacities in two further markets, an important building block for the Vienna Insurance Group,' said Vienna Insurance Company chief executive Guenter Geyer in a statement.

The Albanian insurance market yielded premiums of 37 mln eur in 2006, to which Sigma contributed 15 mln eur.

Provide more funding for uninsured children

2007-09-20T04:36:00.000-07:00

The Children’s Health Insurance Program has been an exemplary federal-state partnership that has significantly improved early care for low-income children.

Because more families can afford to see doctors, the number of hospitalized Missouri children has decreased substantially since 1997.

Elsewhere, a California study cites improved school attendance.

So improved federal funding allowing more children to be covered should be a slam dunk.

Unfortunately, President Bush has threatened to veto legislation that would greatly increase opportunities for the country’s 9 million uninsured children to enroll.

Congressional leaders need to find the votes to override a veto.

On Wednesday, Health and Human Services Secretary Mike Leavitt said the legislation would encourage people to switch from private health insurance to a government program.

However, restrictions already keep people from dropping private insurance for this program. In Missouri, families have to prove that they have been without insurance for six months and that they cannot purchase affordable coverage.

This program actually saves taxpayers money. It holds down the spiraling costs of health care. When children can’t see a doctor at the onset of illness, they often end up in emergency rooms with more complicated problems that are expensive to treat. When their families can’t pay, that boosts the prices of health care for everyone else.

Bush wants to cut off children in families that earn more than 200 percent of poverty, which works out to $41,300 annually for a family of four. If the president gets his way, 17,000 Missouri children would lose their insurance.

Missouri allows families earning up to 300 percent of poverty to qualify for the Children’s Health Insurance Program. The coverage isn’t free. These families pay premiums as high as $282 a month.

Often these children have costly medical conditions, and no insurance company will cover them. Lawmakers should retain the option for states to offer insurance to these children.

They also should resist the administration’s call to extend the current program without improvements until differences are resolved. That’s a stalling tactic.

Source: www.kansascity.com

ndia's insurance sector heads for $100bn

2007-09-20T04:35:00.000-07:00

India's insurance sector, like many other sectors, is set to boom given the unprecedented growth of the economy. With household incomes rising, the life-insurance market could double from the present US$40 billion to $80 billion or even $100 billion by 2012, global consultancy McKinsey & Co said in a recent study.

Interestingly, McKinsey said that apart from better penetration and greater prosperity, an aging wealthy Indian population will spearhead growth in the insurance sector. Most studies about India tend to focus on the young population below 35 years of age, given to buying gizmos, apparel and cars.

However, lately there have been several reports that a big section of successful Indians with high purchasing power will begin to age soon and throw up a new market segment that businesses will need to tap. This can range from specially catered quality products in the travel and hospitality industry to entertainment, insurance, television, movies, health, fitness, insurance, food, footwear, jewelry and clothing.

More than 110 million Indians are expected to be over 60 by 2016, a figure that could rise to almost 200 million by 2030. India's present population is 1.1 billion.

"All factors are in place for the Indian life-insurance industry to blossom into one of the fastest-growing financial-services markets in the world," said the McKinsey report. "The only one with similar potential is China. The next five years will be very exciting."

Insurance products are being sought in the absence of social security in India and because of tax benefits due to such investments. Indians rank life insurance higher than any other investment, McKinsey said.

Education is another segment in which Indians like to invest a lot of their money as providing a clear step up in life. Insurance products that seek to provide for a child's future needs are thus popular. For female children the emphasis is on higher education as well, rather than focusing on just marriage expenditures.

Indeed, some of the predictions by McKinsey are substantiated by the Life Insurance Council, the top body of life-insurance firms in India, which has said that the industry recorded a growth of 20.5% in renewal premiums in 2006-07.

The average Indian now spends 5.4 times as much on life insurance than seven years back when the industry was not open to private players.

Today Bajaj Alliance, ICICI Lombard, HDFC Standard, Birla Sun Life and ING Vysa are among the 17 life insurers and almost 30 public and private operators. Recently, HSBC Holdings announced that a unit would take a 26% stake in a life-insurance venture with India's Canara Bank and Oriental Bank of Commerce.

The government-owned Life Insurance Corp continues to dominate with 70% of the market because of its big reach. However, the position is being continuously challenged by aggressive private firms.

The presence of an independent insurance regulator to promote orderly growth and protect the policyholder has helped bring about transparency in the market.

Insurance premiums in India have risen from 1.2% to more than 4% of gross domestic product, much less than in Britain or Japan but more than in China, where the figure stands at just 1.7% of GDP. The United States too is at around 4%, but that country has a very strong social-security system that is almost absent in India.

Foreign institutional investors (FIIs) that have long driven the Indian stock markets are facing competition from life insurers. Life-insurance companies pumped Rs1.5 trillion ($37.3 billion) into the equity market in fiscal 2006-07, which is almost five times total FII investments

McKinsey predicts that insurance premiums should rise to between 5.1% and 6.2% of GDP in 2012, even as household disposable income has increased by 5.3% per year, much higher than the 3.6% annual growth over the past 20 years.

Demand for pension cover and medical insurance should also rise. Several products that specially cater to older people are likely to hit the market soon.

India has also made its first moves to introduce social security, health insurance and other welfare schemes for workers in the unorganized sector, which forms more than 90% of the workforce.

The Indian cabinet has approved the Unorganized Sector Workers Social Security Bill 2007 that now needs to be approved by the Parliament. It remains to be seen, however, how the implementation of the scheme pans out, as major government efforts to reach out to the poor via employment or public distribution systems have not succeeded because of rampant corruption and pilferage. The intended beneficiaries never get to see the doles.

On a brighter note, though, KPMG has said that insurance outsourcing is also set to boom. The insurance industry has usually been the most sluggish to go for outsourcing, but in the recent past the market has transformed because of dwindling margins, higher claims disbursement and rising competition.

The size of the industry, with more than 1,500 property- and casualty-insurance companies and 1,300 health-insurance firms in the US alone, makes insurance outsourcing an attractive market, KPMG said.

KPMG said total estimated revenues from offshore insurance business process outsourcing (BPO) services from India were expected to rise from $790 million in 2007 to about $2 billion 2010. "Employment in the Indian insurance offshoring sector is likely to increase from 41,600 to 100,500 in 2010,'' it added.

The key gains of offshoring to India include the low-cost manpower and operations advantage, apart from being an established destination for outsourcing, with the right cultural, social and economic milieu.

It is expected that Indian information-technology (IT) outsourcing firms could tilt current relationships with large insurers. Over time, high-end processes such as analytics, actuarial and underwriting services could move into India, the study suggests. One growth area is claims and policy administration.

"Players like Genpact, WNS and EXL Services, as well as BPO offshoots of IT companies such as IBM, TCS, Infosys, Progeon and Wipro, are expected to emerge as competitive global players in the segment," said KPMG.

However, observers say that overall the insurance sector remains heavily regulated and there is further need to open it to foreign investors to bring in capital.

Foreign holdings in Indian insurance companies are limited to 26%. The Congress party-led government has been looking to change the laws and increase the permissible stake to 49%, but the left-wing parties in the ruling coalition have stymied the efforts

China Pacific Insurance to raise $4 bln in Shanghai, Hong Kong IPO

2007-09-20T04:34:00.002-07:00

China Pacific Insurance (Group) Co., 19.9%-owned by a Carlyle Group L.P.-led consortium, expects to raise a combined $4 billion in initial public offerings in Shanghai and Hong Kong around the end of the year, two people familiar with the situation told Dow Jones Newswires on Thursday.

China Pacific Insurance plans to launch the Shanghai IPO first and then sell shares in Hong Kong shortly afterward, the people said.

China International Capital Corp. and UBS AG's China securities venture, UBS Securities Co., will underwrite the A-share offering, China Pacific Insurance said last week.

Credit Suisse Group will join CICC and UBS to underwrite the Hong Kong offering, the two people said.

China Pacific Insurance spokeswoman Liu Li declined to comment.

Consultant: Insurance Should Be Cheaper

2007-09-20T04:34:00.001-07:00

Property insurance rates have not dropped as much as expected under a new law partly because some companies have increased profit rates, a state consultant told Gov. Charlie Crist and the Florida Cabinet on Wednesday.

Bob Hunter, a former Texas insurance commissioner, said another of several factors is a failure to pass along savings from lower-cost reinsurance _ backup coverage companies can get from the state or private sources.

The Legislature passed the law, which expanded reinsurance available through the state's Hurricane Catastrophe fund in January. It was an attempt to halt premium increases that followed a series of hurricanes in 2004-05.

Hunter, now insurance director for the Consumer Federation of America, said he is sticking with his estimate of a 24 percent average reduction for homeowners. So far, premium cuts have averaged half as much.

"The smaller companies and the Florida-based companies are basically passing through the savings," Hunter told the panel. "It's the large national companies that are fighting this."

He compared the situation to industry resistance in the late 1990s that followed passage of an insurance rollback proposition in California.

"There is the potential for collusion working here among members of the industry," Crist later said. "Potential, I'll emphasize at this point, because I don't like to draw any conclusions before they're proven, but that's very serious."

Sam Miller, spokesman for the Florida Insurance Council, a trade association, said such speculation is off-base.

"There's no collusion," Miller said.

In some cases national companies have allocated an excessive amount of reinsurance costs to Florida, Hunter said. He said some companies also have claimed they are locked into contracts and cannot negotiate better deals even though they get reinsurance from their own subsidiaries.

Hunter also cited a couple factors he said are legitimate reasons rates have not come down: existing premiums were too low and a reduction in a company's amount of reinsurance.

The industry as a whole, though, can easily afford to cut rates, Hunter said. He cited insurance profits totaling $150 billion, or $525 for every man, woman and child in the nation, over the last three years even after paying off billions in hurricane claims, Hunter said.

The 12 percent reduction thus far is based on preliminary data. Insurers must submit true-up filings by Sept. 30, but only about 90 of some 300 companies have yet done so, said Deputy Insurance Commissioner Belinda Miller.

That data will give officials a more accurate picture. State regulators also have subpoenaed records to determine why rates have not dropped as much as expected.

"I'm anxious to get the responses to the subpoenas so we dan determine what action to take," Crist said.

Insurance spokesman Miller also took issue with the premise the reductions have failed to meet expectations, saying the 24 percent estimate applied only to the wind damage portion of a homeowner's policy, which typically also covers fire, theft and liability.

If wind accounts for half of a policy's cost, a 12 percent overall reduction would be in line with the estimate, he said.

Hunter told the governor and Cabinet, though, the estimate was for the overall premium.

Premiums in the pocket: Florida makes insurance fraud arrest

2007-09-19T13:36:00.001-07:00

A former insurance agent who allegedly pocketed tens of thousands of dollars in premiums and left dozens of homeowners in Pasco, Hernando and Hillsborough counties without coverage during the 2004-2005 hurricane season has been arrested.

Bruce Anthony Fonte, former owner of the now-defunct Family Insurance in Port Richey, is charged with organized scheme to defraud in the first degree, punishable by up to 30 years in prison if convicted, a release from Florida's chief financial officer, Alex Sink, said.

The arrest is a result of an investigation and joint effort on the part of multiple divisions of the Department of Financial Services, including the Division of Insurance Fraud, the Division of Agent and Agency Services, the Division of Legal Services and the Division of Consumer Services. Fonte turned himself in Tuesday to the Pasco County Jail, the state said.

DIF initiated the criminal investigation after Agent and Agency Services told detectives that Fonte had sold phony homeowners policies to 44 citizens and kept the more than $90,000 in premiums for himself. Legal Services then suspended and then later revoked Fonte's insurance license, permanently banning Fonte from the business of insurance in Florida.

The investigation revealed victims were defrauded and left without homeowners insurance from March 2003 until December 2005, a period in which Florida was struck by eight destructive hurricanes, Detective Doreen Rapp, DIF's lead investigator in the criminal case, said in a release.

Fonte allegedly stole the money to support a gambling addiction and refunded premiums to some victims when confronted. The lapses in coverage forced several victims to obtain homeowners policies through the state's insurer of last resort, Citizens Property Insurance Corp., for hundreds of dollars more in premiums, the release said.

Attorney Gen. Bill McCollum's Office of Statewide Prosecution will file criminal charges in Pinellas County, the state added.

Source: www.bizjournals.com

Millions in U.S. Have No Life Insurance

2007-09-19T13:35:00.000-07:00

Millions of Americans have no life insurance or are seriously underinsured and that could translate to big financial problems for their loved ones if they die unexpectedly.

"Nobody wants to think about dying," said David F. Woods, president of the LIFE Foundation in Arlington, Va. "People know they need life insurance, but they figure they'll get to getting it someday _ just not today. It's something they put off."

But putting off investing in life insurance can trigger a financial catastrophe for the survivors of a family's breadwinner or its primary caregiver. The odds are they'll be hard-pressed trying to continue rent or mortgage payments, cover child-care and eldercare costs, or fund college savings plans.

"The test is, will somebody suffer financially at your death? If answer is yes, you need life insurance," Woods said.

The insurance industry estimates that more than 60 million adult Americans go without life insurance or have too little coverage, and it has designated September as "life insurance awareness month" to try to draw attention to the problem.

The first step people need to take is to calculate the financial needs of their families should something happen to them.

The LIFE Foundation, formally known as the Life and Health Insurance Foundation for Education, a nonprofit organization funded by the insurance industry, has a calculator on its site at http://www.lifehappens.org that consumers can use to determine their insurance needs.

It looks not only at what a family might require in the short term, including medical costs, funeral expenses and estate settlement fees, but also what it might need in the long term, including repayment of outstanding credit card debt as well as mortgages and college tuition.

That means a single person might need very little insurance, perhaps enough to cover burial costs and leave a small legacy to friends, siblings or charity. But a working mother might need a lot more, and couples who have financial responsibilities for both children and their aging parents might need more yet.

The major types of insurance are "term" and "permanent."

Term insurance provides protection for a specific period of time, often 10 years or 20 years, and pays a benefit only if the insured person dies during that time frame. It's generally the cheapest alternative.

Permanent insurance pays a death benefit whenever the policyholder dies; it's sold under a variety of names, including whole life and universal life and variable life. Many of the permanent life policies have a cash value as an alternative to the death benefit.

Chris Blunt, senior vice president and chief operating officer for life and annuity operations at New York Life Insurance Co., said he believes many people underestimate how much it costs to sustain a family.

"Say you have a $100,000 term policy," he said. "That sounds like a lot of money, but it won't provide the income to support a family for very long."

In fact, he said, the average coverage people have "would replace just four years of salary." That probably would give survivors time to adjust, but it also would force them to significantly change their lifestyles to cover expenses after that.

Blunt also believes too many people have bought term insurance when permanent life would have been a better way to accumulate wealth.

"A lot of financial advisers told people, 'buy term and invest the difference,'" he said. "There are two fallacies there: Most people don't hang on to their coverage. And instead of investing, they spend the difference."

He also argues that people often need insurance beyond the traditional 10 years or 20 years of term coverage.

"The theory is that 20 years from now, my house is paid off. But in reality, most people don't pay off their mortgages _ and even take out bigger mortgages when they retire," Blunt said. "After 20 years, the kids are supposed to be gone. But a lot more back home. Then there's that other, forgotten piece, which is care for elderly parents."

Certainly, term insurance holders can try to replace their term policies later, but health issues could make that difficult and rates could be much higher for older consumers than younger ones.

Both Blunt and Woods urged consumers to sit down with insurance professionals and look at options.

"Some of our agents are passionate about this because they've seen first-hand what happens when a breadwinner dies and there was no coverage _ or there was coverage," he said.

Added Woods: "We want people to take action, and I worry that many won't until a qualified professional sits down with them."

Bank of Smithtown Acquires Second Insurance Agency

2007-09-19T13:34:00.000-07:00

Bank of Smithtown Insurance Agents & Brokers, Inc. (a wholly-owned subsidiary of Bank of Smithtown) has acquired all of the assets of Payne & Palmieri, Inc., an independent insurance agency located in East Setauket, New York.

In August 2004, Bank of Smithtown purchased Seigerman-Mulvey Co., Inc., an independent insurance agency located in East Setauket. For the past three years, the Bank has continued to operate the agency, which offers personal and business lines of insurance. Now, through its insurance agency subsidiary, the Bank has purchased a second agency, also located in the East Setauket area. The three employees of Payne & Palmieri, including Ernest Palmieri, will continue with the agency.

Joanne Bentivegna, President of Bank of Smithtown Insurance, said: "This is a very natural extension for us. The customers of both agencies will benefit from the increased servicing capabilities and the increased customer choices created by the acquisition."

Brad Rock, Chairman & CEO of Bank of Smithtown and its parent holding company, Smithtown Bancorp (NASDAQ: SMTB), said: "We continue to believe that insurance fits well with our community banking business, and provides us with a source of increased noninterest income that counterbalances fluctuations in net income that can result from changes in the interest rate environment. Our first acquisition of an insurance agency helped us accomplish those goals, and this most recent acquisition will take us a step further on that path."

The terms of the deal were not disclosed, but Mr. Rock said that the transaction would be accretive to earnings immediately. He also added that, because Payne & Palmieri is a relatively small agency, the increase to Bank of Smithtown's income during the remainder of 2007 would not be "very significant." Bank of Smithtown has assets of approximately $1.1 billion and revenues of approximately $85 million.

Mr. Rock added: "There continue to be many small insurance agencies on Long Island where the principal or principals are nearing retirement. There are also a variety of pressures from insurance carriers and the competitive environment that are pushing smaller agencies to consolidate. We will continue to look for agencies that fit our model to build upon our existing insurance platform in the future."

Forward-Looking Statements

This release and other written materials and statements management may make, may contain forward-looking statements regarding the Company's prospective performance and strategies within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. The Company intends such forward-looking statements to be covered by the safe harbor provisions for forward-looking statements contained in the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, and is including this statement for purposes of said safe harbor provisions.

Forward-looking statements, which are based on certain assumptions and describe future plans, strategies and expectations of the Company, are sometimes identified by use of the words "plan," "believe," "expect," "intend," "anticipate," "estimate," "project," or other similar expressions. The Company's ability to predict results or the actual effects of its plans and strategies is inherently uncertain. Accordingly actual results may differ materially from anticipated results.

Factors that could have a material adverse effect on the operations of the Company and its subsidiaries include, but are not limited to, a change in economic conditions; changes in interest rates, deposit flows, loan demand, real estate values, and competition; changes in accounting principles, policies, or guidelines; changes in legislation and regulation; other risk factors disclosed in the Company's reports filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission; and other economic, competitive, governmental, regulatory, geopolitical and technological factors affecting the Company's operations, pricing and services.

Investors are cautioned not to place undue reliance on forward-looking statements as a prediction of actual results. Except as required by applicable law or regulation, the Company undertakes no obligation to republish or revise forward-looking statements to reflect events or circumstances after the date the statements were made or to reflect the occurrences of unanticipated results. Investors are advised, however, to consult any further disclosures the Company makes on related subjects in our reports to the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Source: http://money.cnn.com

House Votes to Widen Insurance in Terror Attack

2007-09-19T13:33:00.000-07:00

Over the objections of the White House, the House of Representatives overwhelmingly adopted legislation today that would significantly expand the federal program that assists the insurance industry in the event of a major terrorist attack.

The program has been sought by commercial real estate developers and insurers who say that there is little private market for such insurance — and that without it, developers cannot get the financing they need to complete major projects, particularly in cities considered possible targets of attacks.

By a vote of 312 to 110, the House approved a measure that would extend the terrorism risk insurance program for 15 years. It would add group life insurance to the lines of insurance covered by the program, and it would cover domestic terrorist attacks as well as foreign ones. It would also require commercial property and casualty insurance policies to cover losses from terrorist attacks involving nuclear, biological, chemical or radiological attacks. Typically such policies now exclude such coverage.

The measure, which was written by Representative Barney Frank, a Massachusetts Democrat, and pushed aggressively by the delegation from New York and surrounding areas, now heads to the Senate. It is expected to act promptly on related legislation because the current federal terrorism insurance program expires in December.

In recent days, the prospects for quick legislative action were delayed by a new estimate by the nonpartisan Congressional Budget Office that the measure could increase the deficit by $3.5 billion over the next five years and by $8.4 billion over a decade. In one of its first acts since taking control of the House, the Democrats had adopted a pay-as-you-go measure that requires any new government spending be offset by either an equal increase in taxes or a cut in other federal programs.

The new estimate had threatened to derail the measure, and this week the House leadership agreed to a fix that even supporters of the legislation said probably would not work but would at least move the legislation along as other options are considered. To get past the pay-as-you-go rules, the Democrats inserted a provision in the bill that would require that if an attack occurred, Congress would have to vote again as part of a fast-track procedure to provide the money outlined in the bill.

The Terrorism Risk Insurance Act was adopted in 2002 after commercial real estate developers and other businesses heavily lobbied Congress for assistance to the insurance industry. The industry’s inability to provide adequate insurance for terrorist attacks had threatened to derail many projects as lenders insisted on broad coverage to provide loans to finance them.

Under that program, which was reauthorized in 2005, the government provided financial assistance to commercial property and casualty insurers for losses above certain thresholds that were caused by foreign terrorists. The program also gives the government the authority to recoup federal payments up to certain limits.

Earlier this week, the White House threatened that President Bush would veto the House measure, saying that it was an unacceptable expansion of what should be a temporary and short-term program.

“The administration believes that the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act should be phased out in favor of a private market for terrorism insurance,” the White House said in a statement issued last Monday. “The Administration strongly opposes efforts to expand the federal government’s role in terrorism reinsurance. The most efficient, lowest cost, and most innovate methods of providing terrorism risk insurance will come from the private sector.”

But Mr. Frank and other Democrats supporting the legislation disputed that claim.

“There are in our midst people who believe in the free market so firmly that they believe in it the way other people believe in unicorns,” Mr. Frank said. “They believe in it even though it does not exist.”

Mr. Frank then quoted from a 2005 letter from Henry M. Paulson Jr., then the chief executive of Goldman Sachs to Congress urging reauthorization of the insurance program because there had been no significant private market. Mr. Paulson is now the Treasury secretary.

Mr. Frank predicted that the effort by the legislation to get around the pay-as-you-go rules would be changed before the measure is finally adopted.

But Republicans seized on the provision as an ill-conceived accounting gimmick.

“This bill should be defeated because it is irresponsible and fiscally dangerous to pass legislation that has an open ended obligation on the budget,” said John Culberson, Republican of Texas.

Some Democrats who support the measure also were uncomfortable with the financing procedure because they said a requirement of an additional Congressional vote to approve the disbursement of money would leave too much uncertainty in the markets.

“We should fix the rule so that in case there is an attack, the federal government would step in and we would not worry about the budget,” said Representative Gary L. Ackerman, Democrat of New York. “Any town, any city, deserves to know that if they are attacked, they will know that America stands behind them and will help put them back together again.”

Source: www.nytimes.com

Health Insurance Industry Looks to Senior Lobbyists

2007-09-18T14:40:00.000-07:00

If the rumor mill is correct, Karen M. Ignagni is about to notch a major victory for her employer, the nation's health insurance industry.

As chief executive of the awkwardly named America's Health Insurance Plans, Ignagni presides over the association that represents nearly 1,300 companies that sell health insurance. In that capacity, she has been fighting a rear-guard action in Congress this year to defeat a cutback in Medicare.

On Aug. 1, the House voted to take a five-year, $50 billion bite out of Medicare Advantage, a health plan for seniors that Ignagni's members help run. The next day, the Senate passed companion legislation, but it did not take a dime out of Medicare Advantage.

Now, Capitol Hill is abuzz that the House might soon bow to the Senate and largely if not completely spare the program from cuts -- at least for now. If that happens, Ignagni's member companies stand to profit handsomely and millions of seniors will continue to benefit from Medicare Advantage.

Ignagni will assert (and I expect the phone call any minute now) that she was not responsible for any victory. She will say that it was senior citizens who made all the difference. And to a large extent, she is correct.

But she is also complicit. Ignagni's group, with the help of its members, has been building a list of senior citizen activists since 1999. Known as the Coalition for Medicare Choices, the network is managed by association employees who regularly keep in touch with the seniors who sign up and spur them to action when they are needed.

The network is currently 400,000 strong. In recent months, every senator and nearly 100 congressmen were contacted by multiple seniors in the system. Over the August recess alone, the association clocked about 20,000 calls to congressional offices.

Ignagni supplemented this deluge with a national advertising campaign. Its targeted TV commercials were designed to thank some lawmakers for supporting the industry's position and to remind others who are on the fence that seniors would not be happy if Medicare Advantage were trimmed.

The association also bought newspaper ads to praise the overall legislation, which at its heart expands the popular State Children's Health Insurance Program, or SCHIP. The ad pointedly recommended the Senate's version, which pays for the SCHIP expansion with an increase in tobacco taxes, not a cut in Medicare Advantage.

The effect has been impressive. Congressional aides say they have heard the association's point of view even above the din created by two of Washington's most powerful interests: the American Medical Association and AARP.

AARP, which represents nearly 39 million older Americans, and the AMA, the nation's largest physicians group, joined forces in July to push the House version of the bill. AARP prefers the House bill because it enhances certain aspects of Medicare (other than Medicare Advantage), especially for low-income seniors. The AMA is happy with the House rendition because it blocks a scheduled reduction in Medicare payments to doctors.

Both provisions could well come back later this year -- paid for by shaving Medicare Advantage -- because many lawmakers believe that Medicare Advantage is too rich a program. But for now Ignagni's outpouring of outrage appears to have won the day.

Source: www.washingtonpost.com

Clinton unveils mandatory health care insurance plan

2007-09-17T13:43:00.000-07:00

Democratic presidential candidate Sen. Hillary Clinton announced a $110 billion health care reform plan Monday that would require all Americans to have health insurance.

Clinton unveiled her "American Health Choices Plan," during a high-profile speech at a hospital in the key campaign state of Iowa, surrounded by supporters, American flags and campaign banners.

"Here in America people are dying because they couldn't get the care they needed when they were sick.

"I'm here today because I believe it is long past time that this nation had an answer," Clinton said. "I believe America is ready for change.

"It's time to provide quality affordable health care for every American," Clinton said. "And I intend to be the president who accomplishes that goal finally for our country."

A Clinton adviser compares the plan's "individual mandate" -- which requires everyone to have health insurance -- to current rules in most states that require all drivers to purchase auto insurance, according to The Associated Press. Watch Clinton outline her health care proposal »

In her plan, Clinton said families would receive tax credits to help pay for coverage. The tax credit would be designed to limit the premiums to a percentage of a family's income.

Federal subsidies would be provided for those who are not able to afford insurance, and large businesses would be expected to provide or help pay for their employees' insurance.

Clinton said her plan would not require small businesses to take part, but will offer tax credits to encourage them to do so.

About 46.6 million people in the United States were without health care insurance in 2005, including 8.3 million children, according to a U.S. Census Bureau report released last year.

"I know my Republican opponents will try to equate this plan with government-run health care. Well don't let them fool you again," Clinton said, explaining that her plan would allow participants to "keep the doctors you know and trust" while it would expand "personal choice" and keep costs down.

Clinton's package would also require insurers to provide coverage for anyone who applies for it and would also bar insurance companies from charging people with greater health care costs more for their premiums.

Under Clinton's plan, Americans would be offered the same health care benefits of private health care plans offered to Congress through the federal employee benefits program as well as a public program similar to Medicare.

Americans satisfied with their current coverage will be allowed to keep it, the Clinton campaign said.

To help pay for the plan, Clinton would also eliminate the Bush tax cuts for those making over $250,000 and limit the amount employers can exclude from taxes for health care benefits paid for those making over $250,000.

Clinton's announcement marks her return to the health care game, nearly a decade and a half after her first foray. As first lady, Clinton spearheaded the Clinton administration's attempt to overhaul the country's health care system in 1993 and 1994.

But critics attacked the Clintons' plan as socialized medicine, and it was killed by opposition from congressional Republicans and many in the medical and pharmaceutical industries. It was Clinton's biggest political defeat.

Now Clinton is the third of the front-running Democratic White House hopefuls to formally unveil her plan, following Sen. Barack Obama, D-Illinois, and former Sen. John Edwards.

Supporters defend Clinton by saying that she has already made parts of her proposals public, and she often speaks out publicly about her health care plans.

Clinton's Democratic rivals wasted no time in reminding voters of her timing.

"I commend Senator Clinton for her health care proposal," said Obama in a statement. "It's similar to the one I put forth last spring, though my universal health care plan would go further in reducing the punishing cost of health care than any other proposal that's been offered in this campaign."

Edwards, speaking Monday to the Laborers' International Union of North America in Chicago, Illinois, echoed Obama.

"I'm glad that, today, the architect of the 1993 plan has another care proposal -- and if imitation is the sincerest form of flattery, then I'm flattered," said Edwards, a former U.S. senator from North Carolina. "The lesson Senator Clinton seems to have learned from her experience with health care is, 'If you can't beat 'em, join 'em.' I learned a very different lesson from decades of fighting powerful interests -- you can never join 'em, you just have to beat 'em."

Edwards' proposal would cut off health care for the president, Congress and all political appointees in mid 2009, if a universal health care plan for all Americans has not been passed by then.

Clinton's Democratic rival, Sen. Chris Dodd of Connecticut, used her past attempts at health care reform in criticizing Clinton's proposal.

"The mismanagement of the effort in 1993 and 1994 has set back our ability to move toward universal health care immeasurably," Dodd said in a statement. "We've known what the problems have been for nearly 15 years and what the solutions could be. What's been missing is leadership that knows how to bring people together and get the job done."

Clinton also took hits from GOP presidential hopefuls, including former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani, whose criticism sounded like a movie review.

"If you liked Michael Moore's 'Sicko,' you're going to love HillaryCare 2.0," said the Giuliani statement. "Senator Clinton's latest health scheme includes more government mandates, expensive federal subsidies and more big bureaucracy -- in short, a prescription for an increase in wait times, a decrease in patient care and tax hikes to pay for it all."

Source: http://edition.cnn.com

Big Marsh & McLennan Unit Seeks CEO

2007-09-15T12:43:00.001-07:00

Marsh & McLennan Cosis searching for a new top executive to lead its insurance brokerage, Marsh Inc., after the removal on Friday of the subsidiary's chief executive, Brian Storms.

The company said Michael Cherkasky, the CEO of Marsh & McLennan, would serve as the unit's acting head. He served in that role in 2004 and 2005, after taking over as head of the company.

People familiar with the matter said Mr. Storms was removed from his post. Reached last night, Mr. Storms declined to comment about the circumstances of his departure.

New York-based Marsh & McLennan has been trying in recent years to recover from a costly 2005 agreement, which settled charges that the New York firm fixed bids in order to steer business to favored insurers and boost its own commissions.

The agreement with insurance regulators and then-New York Attorney General Eliot Spitzer forced the company to give up more than $800 million a year in revenue from so-called contingent commissions from insurers. Marsh's profitability collapsed soon after the bid-rigging scandal, forcing the company to cut costs by eliminating thousands of jobs.

Key to its recovery strategy is an effort to expand its relationship with corporate customers by increasing the range of services they receive from the parent company. Marsh Inc. is the company's largest unit. At the same time, however, the company also needs to make sure that it isn't undermining the core brokerage business in the process.

Mr. Cherkasky said Friday that Mr. Storms had made "important contributions to Marsh's recovery over the past two years." He added that "our long-term strategy is sound, and a solid foundation has been built."

In addition to Marsh Inc., the company's units include Guy Carpenter, a reinsurance brokerage; Kroll, a risk-consulting firm; Mercer, a human-resources consultancy; and Oliver Wyman, a management-consulting firm.

The company's share price has dropped in recent months from more than $31 in July. It fell 26 cents to $26.18 in 4 p.m. New York Stock Exchange composite trading Friday. Last month, it agreed to buy back $800 million of its shares outstanding in an accelerated share-repurchase transaction.

In the company's statement about Mr. Storms' departure, Mr. Cherkasky also said the company now needs "a different set of leadership and operational skills to complete the successful transformation of Marsh."

Source: http://online.wsj.com

Presidential Candidates on Health Care

2007-09-15T12:42:00.001-07:00

Democratic presidential candidate Hillary Rodham Clinton rejoins the health care debate in earnest Monday with a plan to expand coverage. Positions of other presidential candidates:

DEMOCRATS:

_Delaware Sen. Joe Biden: Expand health insurance to cover all children and to make catastrophic care available for all; look to states for ideas on moving toward universal coverage.

_Connecticut Sen. Chris Dodd: Expand coverage by offering insurance that could be taken from job to job, with premiums based on ability to pay. No cost estimates offered for plan. Offer coverage similar to that in plan for federal employees.

_Former Tennessee Sen. John Edwards: Achieve mandatory universal coverage by 2012 with a system of expanded federal health insurance, family tax credits and coverage requirements on employers, insurance companies and individuals. Increase taxes to pay for program's cost of up to $120 billion a year.

_Ohio Rep. Dennis Kucinich: Favors national health insurance program covering medical, dental, mental health and long-term care for all, as well as prescription drugs. "My plan doesn't provide for a role for for-profit insurance companies."

_Illinois Sen. Barack Obama: Require employers to share costs of insuring workers and ensure all children are covered. Offer coverage similar to that in plan for federal employees. Says package would cost up to $65 billion a year after unspecified savings from making system more efficient. Raise taxes to pay the cost.

_New Mexico Gov. Bill Richardson: Tax breaks for businesses and for people who pay for their own coverage. Lower the eligibility age for Medicare to 55 and expand programs for poor and children. Package could cost up to $110 billion a year. Would seek savings in medical care by expanding spending on preventive care.

___

REPUBLICANS:

_Kansas Sen. Sam Brownback: "Market-based solutions, not government-run health care."

_Former New York Mayor Rudy Giuliani: Income tax deduction of $7,500 per taxpayer to defray insurance costs. Tax credit for poorer workers to supplement Medicaid and employer contributions, as part of "market-driven" expansion of affordable coverage. Expanded use of health savings accounts.

_Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee: Favors market solutions, state innovation. "We don't need universal health care mandated by federal edict or funding through ever-higher taxes." Spend more on prevention and research.

_California Rep. Duncan Hunter: Supported expansion of health insurance through tax breaks, not government-sponsored universal coverage.

_Arizona Sen. John McCain: Has a record of promoting prescription drug coverage for older people and expanded insurance for children, but not universal coverage.

_Former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney: Incentives for states to expand affordable coverage. As governor, he signed health care law aimed at ensuring universal coverage through a mix of subsidies, sliding scale premiums and penalties for those who do not get insurance.

_Colorado Rep. Tom Tancredo: Market reforms instead of more federal spending to expand health coverage.

_Former Tennessee Sen. Fred Thompson: "Market-driven" expansion of affordable coverage.

Source: http://ap.google.com

Congress nears a deal on children’s health insurance program

2007-09-15T12:41:00.000-07:00

WASHINGTON | House and Senate Democratic leaders are on the verge of a deal to expand the state-federal health insurance program for the children of working parents, senior aides said Friday.

The measure would set up a major confrontation with President Bush, who could veto it.

The State Children’s Health Insurance Program, a federal-state partnership that covers about 6 million children, will expire Sept. 30 unless Congress and the president agree to extend it.

Leaders in both chambers are nearing agreement to spend about $35 billion more on the program over five years, significantly below that approved by the House but close to the amount that cleared the Senate this summer by a veto-proof 68-31 margin.

The new funding would expand the program to serve more children whose parents’ incomes put them well above the poverty line; Bush wants the emphasis to remain on the poor.

Source: www.kansascity.com

Travel insurance policies pack more options

2007-09-14T07:32:00.000-07:00

If you're thinking about buying travel insurance, here's the good news: The typical policy covers a lot more than it once did, and companies are rolling out options that offer even more protection.

The bad news: All the new options are making choosing a plan more confusing than ever.

Just last week, one of the largest travel insurance companies, AIG Travel Guard, announced nearly a half-dozen major changes.

For starters, Travel Guard will insure trips that cost as much as $100,000, up from $30,000. The firm also is reaching out to traveling parents by including children ages 17 or under at no additional cost in one of its plans, ProtectAssist.

But perhaps the biggest change at Travel Guard is that for an extra payment equal to 40% of your base premium, it will add a "cancel for any reason" clause to select policies. Customers will be reimbursed for 50% to 75% of the cost of the trip if they cancel up to 48 hours before departure. Until now, customers needed a valid reason to cancel, such as a death in the family.

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For an additional $24, customers also can add a "cancel for work reasons" clause to many of its policies.

"We're moving further and further away from one-size-fits-all travel insurance," says AIG Travel Guard's Dan McGinnity.

Such changes are driven by consumer demand, says Peter Evans of InsureMyTrip.com, which compares more than 100 travel insurance plans sold by 18 companies.

Evans says one of the biggest changes the past two years is the addition of language that allows customers to cancel if the destination they're visiting becomes uninhabitable by, say, a hurricane.

Companies also have expanded coverage of terrorist incidents.

"Prior to 9/11, policies were written to cover terrorist attacks in foreign locations but not domestic," Evans says. "Now, if you go through these policies, you'll find they read 'foreign and domestic.' "

The changes can be confusing. But as Evans notes, the typical package policy is less daunting to understand if you break it down into its parts.

Here's a primer on the main elements in most package policies (customers also can buy individual types of coverage separately):

•Trip cancellation insurance. This reimburses you for the cost of your trip if you have to cancel because you or someone in your family becomes ill or injured, or if there is a death in the family. Definitions of "family member" vary, so read the fine print.

Other covered reasons for trip cancellation can include bad weather, an accident on the way to the airport, financial default of your travel company or jury duty.

•Trip interruption insurance. This reimburses you for the unused portion of your trip if you have to cut it short due to an illness, injury or death in the family. It also covers any extra costs incurred to get home, which is why policies sometimes cover up to 125% or 150% of the cost of your trip.

•Travel baggage insurance. This reimburses you for the contents of your luggage if it is lost, stolen or damaged. Most policies limit the reimbursement to $500 or $1,000 and exclude items such as eyeglasses, contact lenses and cash.

•Travel baggage delay insurance. This reimburses for the cost of toiletries, clothing and other items needed to tide you over if your baggage doesn't arrive when you do. Many policies say your bags have to be at least 24 hours late and limit claims to $100 or $200.

•Travel delay insurance. This reimburses for unforeseen expenses if your trip is held up due to a flight delay, natural disaster, lost or stolen passport, etc. Delays usually must be for at least six hours, and most companies limit reimbursements to $100 or $200 a day.

•Medical insurance. This reimburses for expenses not covered by your regular medical insurance. Medicare and Medicare HMOs, for instance, rarely cover illnesses and injuries that occur abroad.

•Emergency medical evacuation. This covers medical evacuation if you become ill in a place without adequate medical care. The insurance will pay for the cost of a helicopter or air ambulance jet to transport you to the "nearest adequate medical facility."

Some companies now allow customers to upgrade coverage to include transportation to a hospital of your choice — a change that can mean the difference between being taken to a local hospital in a foreign country and being flown back to the USA. Travel Guard last week added such an option for an additional $17 per person.

Be sure to check the limits on this coverage. It's not uncommon for the cost of an air ambulance to exceed $25,000, so it's worth paying for a policy with a high limit.

Packages, policies and what's covered

More than a dozen companies in the USA sell travel insurance. The most popular product is the so-called package policy, a comprehensive offering that includes coverage for just about anything that could go wrong on a trip — from a medical emergency to a lost bag. The typical package, sold on a per-trip basis, costs roughly 4% to 8% of the value of the trip, depending on the age of the traveler. A sampling of some of the most popular policies and what they offer (costs shown here are for a 65-year-old couple taking a one-week, $6,000 cruise in March, as quoted by InsureMyTrip.com).

Source: www.usatoday.com

Insurance industry throws its weight behind Climate Wise plan

2007-09-14T07:31:00.000-07:00

The insurance industry launched a new climate change initiative in conjunction with the Prince of Wales yesterday, aiming to put pressure on both British businesses and consumers to take environmental issues more seriously.

The so-called "ClimateWise" principles were drawn up by a group of global insurers and brokers, as well as the Lloyd's of London market. The Prince of Wales' business and environment programme was also involved in the working party.

As well as promoting environmental issues by rewarding customers who make an effort to reduce their carbon emissions, the industry also hopes to put pressure on businesses, by using its collective might as investors. The insurance industry accounts for around a fifth of the entire London Stock Exchange, and has the power to vote off company directors that refuse to adopt eco-friendly policies.

Commenting on the initiative, His Royal Highness, The Prince of Wales, said: "The ClimateWise principles are targeted on those areas of skill and expertise within the insurance sector, and are the result of nearly a year's hard work. I hope and pray that they will be useful in encouraging both collective and individual action to tackle climate change, and I do congratulate all those involved."

Peter Hubbard, chief executive of AXA Insurance and chairman of the working group that drew up the principles, added: "The responsibility for addressing global warming rests with us all, and will require co-operation and agreement amongst individuals, businesses and countries. It is this spirit of co-operation that has led us to agree the ClimateWise principles and to take the lead in raising this issue.

"ClimateWise demonstrates the importance this industry attaches to this challenge. The principles set a framework for us taking up this exciting challenge of changing behaviour, raising awareness and encouraging new ways of working."

The initiative was launched at a climate change conference hosted by the Association of British Insurers yesterday. The ABI said one of its objectives was to continue making insurance available to households, even in areas at high risk of flooding.

Stephen Haddrill, the director general of the ABI, said the principle would encourage "greater climate-friendly behaviour among our customers, through our investment strategy and risk analysis."

Source: http://news.independent.co.uk

Car boot treasures 'need covering with home insurance'

2007-09-13T10:40:00.000-07:00

According to home insurance provider Halifax, 5.6 million UK residents make £890 from speculating on bargains at car boot sales.

Some 12 per cent of Brits have managed to snap up a treasure at the second-hand sales, while two-thirds of consumers stated that they have visited such an event in the last five years.

Vicky Emmott, Senior Manager of Underwriting at the firm, said: "Britons like nothing more than snapping up a bargain, and with all those TV programmes devoted to turning trash into treasure more Britons seem to know what they are looking for."

But she added that people must inform their home insurance company of changes to the contents of their property, especially if they take home a bit of treasure found at a car boot stall.

Recently, Nationwide Building Society urged consumers to ensure that their children's possessions were covered by home insurance if they were heading back to university.

Householders could save up to 15 per cent on their home insurance when they take combined buildings and contents cover with Kwik-Fit Insurance.
Source: www.kwik-fitinsurance.com

Allianz 'offers cheap life insurance'

2007-09-13T06:24:00.001-07:00

German insurer Allianz has dramatically undercut the local life insurance market with a direct-to-customer, online offering that it says is cheap and simple enough to help fill Australia's underinsurance gap.

Allianz Australia said that for a male non-smoker, its new products were more than 20 per cent cheaper than the average product distributed by financial advisers and 35 per cent cheaper than the average product sold direct via phone or internet.

Most life insurance, which includes death and injury cover, is sold through intermediaries such as financial planners who mostly charge commissions.

Local competitor CommsInsure, owned by the Commonwealth Bank of Australia (CBA), responded by telling AAP that it would consider offering online life insurance next year, but won't be "dying in a ditch over it".

Only a handful of companies in Australia such as Alliance, ING and Suncorp offer life insurance directly online or over the phone.

Online insurance has traditionally been even more expensive because checks and balances in the underwriting process are kept simpler - making the insurer exposed to a broader range of claims.

But Allianz says online insurers can afford to lower their prices, and are keeping them high to protect their advisory channel.

"There's a whole lot of incentive for them to do that because the majority of their sales come through those intermediaries," Allianz Australia chief executive Jonathan Poole told journalists.

"We're not saying that financial advisers don't offer a valuable service, they obviously do.

"But for a lot of Australians it's a service that they don't need."

CommInsure chief executive Simon Swanson said it was hard to compare insurance offerings based on price because not all offerings were the same.

"A Volkswagen is much cheaper than a Mercedes," he said.

Mr Swanson said the online insurance market in Australia remained small because people usually gravitate towards life insurance if it was sold to them.

"I don't know about you, but when I woke up this morning I didn't actually think about buying more life insurance," he said.

Allianz will launch an advertising campaign for its new products that includes television commercials, on Sunday.

Its move mirrors similar steps taken by Tesco Plc in the UK where the retailing giant has won a significant share of the life insurance market through direct sales.

Mr Swanson said CBA was considering offering online life insurance.

"We'll get into that in the new year, but we're not going to die in a ditch over it."

Allianz will offer a maximum of $1.25 million in death cover over the internet and claims to be the first in Australia to offer critical illness and disability cover online.

It has also flagged briefer but still comprehensive injury definitions, and product disclosure statements of seven pages - much smaller than the 30 to 90 page offerings of its competitors.

Source: www.smh.com.au

Insurance premiums increasing at slower pace

2007-09-13T06:23:00.001-07:00

Insurance premium growth rates might have slowed nationwide for the fourth straight year, but the growth still outpaced inflation, a new study indicates.

Across the country, premiums for employer-sponsored health plans rose on average 6.1 percent, down from the 7.1 percent in 2006, according to a study released Wednesday by the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation.

In the Midwest region of the study, which includes Ohio, premiums rose 6 percent.

Since 2001, premiums for family coverage have increased 78 percent nationwide, while wages have gone up 19 percent and rate of inflation is 17 percent, the foundation's report shows.

The average premium for family coverage in 2007 is $12,106. Workers on average now contribute an average of about $3,281, or 27 percent, of their paychecks for a family plan. During the past six years, the amount families pay out-of-pocket for premiums has increased by about $1,500, said Drew Altman, Kaiser president and chief executive officer, in a release.

"Every year, health insurance becomes less affordable for families and businesses," Altman said.

The Menlo Park, Calif.-based Kaiser Family Foundation is a private, non-profit foundation that conducts and releases research and analysis on health-care-related topics. The foundation took in $57.5 million in program revenue in its fiscal year ending in 2006.

Source: www.bizjournals.com

Insurance industry introduces new measures in the fight against climate change

2007-09-13T06:21:00.000-07:00

Today marks the launch of a major new initiative amongst the insurance industry to encourage its customers to do their bit in the challenge against climate change, the Association of British Insurers has reported.

In an attempt to raise awareness and promote action on climate change, leading global insurers, reinsurers and brokers have developed the Climate Wise principles, which will enable companies and organisations to make climate change a priority in their business operations.

The measures have been developed over nine months and through cooperation between the ABI, His Royal Highness’s Business and the Environment Programme, and Business in the Community.

His Royal Highness, The Prince of Wales, said: “The ClimateWise principles are targeted on those areas of skill and expertise within the insurance sector and are the result of nearly a year’s hard work. I hope and pray that they will be useful in encouraging both collective and individual action to tackle climate change and I do congratulate all those involved.”

The principal areas that ClimateWise intends to target include influencing the attitudes and behaviour of both business and the individual, on a global level, to practice more climate-friendly behaviour, investment strategy, and risk analysis.

Peter Hubbard, Chief Executive of AXA Insurance and Chairman of the Industry Working Group that drew up the principles, said: “The responsibility for addressing global warming rests with us all and will require co-operation and agreement amongst individuals, businesses and countries. It is this spirit of co-operation that has led us to agree the ClimateWise principles and to take the lead in raising this issue.”

Stephen Haddrill, Director General of the Association of British Insurers, added:

“The insurance industry ensures we are all better equipped to deal with our changing climate. But we need to do more. The principles will enable us to do so by encouraging greater climate-friendly behaviour among our customers, through our investment strategy and risk analysis.”

Indeed, if greater measures are not taken to slow or reverse the effects of climate change, the insurance industry will be one of its victims, F&C has warned. Because of the increasingly adverse weather conditions, such as hurricanes, flooding and wildfires, a continuous rise can be seen in the number of house insurance, health and life insurance, car insurance, and liability and indemnity insurance claims.
Source: www.fairinvestment.co.uk