Linked-benefit products spur 62% combined individual life sales surge
New premium sales of individual life combination products rose 62% in 2010, reaching $1.2 billion, boosted by linked-benefit products, according to LIMRA. The increase marks the second straight year of...
View ArticleWorkers’ comp. coverage, employer costs see deepest decline in decades
Job loss resulting from the recession caused workers’ compensation coverage to fall in 2009, the biggest decrease in two decades, according to a new report. The number of workers covered by workers’...
View ArticleNICB: 4.5% increase in questionable claims in first half of year
The number of questionable property-casualty insurance claims filed in the first half of the year increased 4.5% over the prior year, according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau. From January to...
View ArticleWillis investigating $28 million in fraudulent commissions, fees
Insurance broker Willis Group Holdings has begun an internal investigation into its discovery of about $28 million in fraudulent overstatements of commissions and fees between 2005 and 2011 in its...
View ArticleJustice Kennedy, others re-ignite torch for single-payer health care
If you believe the theory that a single-payer system of health insurance is the ultimate goal of the Obama Administration and Democrats, then March 27 might prove an important day. That morning U.S....
View ArticleMedicaid enrollments continuing to climb
The number of people covered by Medicaid managed-care programs increased 8% in 2010, according to new research from a Kennebunk, Maine, firm. Mark Farrah Associates’ latest Healthcare Business Strategy...
View ArticleTakeovers driving more voluntary life insurance sales growth
Nearly half (42%) of new voluntary life insurance sales premium in 2011 were the result of takeover sales, according to the U.S. Worksite/Voluntary Sales Report. The sales, where one carrier’s plan is...
View ArticleU.S. health spending growth trend is ‘unprecedented’
Health spending in May rose by 3.8%, continuing a three-year trend of about 4% annual growth, according to a new analysis. Health care prices in May rose 2% over the same period in 2011, but rose just...
View ArticleInsurers face rising long-term disability insurance loss ratios
Long-term disability insurers experienced greater loss ratios in 2011 than two year prior, according to a new analysis. Loss ratios for individual long-term disability insurance reached 98.09% last...
View ArticleMd. amendments clear up who’s employee, independent contractor
Maryland law recently changed to clarifying the definition of employees and independent contractors, according a business lawyer. The amendments to the Maryland Workplace Fraud Act of 2009 recently...
View ArticleProperty-casualty insurers’ operating profits down, but improving
Operating profits declined for most property-casualty insurers in the first half of the year, but exceeded the poor performance in the first six months of 2009, according to a Fitch analysis of 50...
View ArticleIncrease in possible fraudulent insurance claims is ‘no big deal’
The number of questionable insurance claims last year, although 24% more than in 2008, is a “statistical no big deal,” according to a National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB) official. The 91,797 claims...
View ArticleLife, health insurers finding ‘balance’ after ‘alarming’ two-year span
Life and health insurance companies may be in a safer place, at least in terms of their ratings, than they have been in the last two years, according to A.M. Best Co. Last year showed “balance” in...
View Article‘Unprecedented’ opportunity for advisors as annuity assets reach all-time high
The annuity industry ended last year on “strong and secure footing,” where variable annuity assets reached an all-time high and fourth quarter sales showed the highest levels of last year, a report...
View ArticleP-C insurers’ net premium written shows first rise since 2006
Net premium written by property-casualty insurers grew 1.1% last year, the first increase since 2006, and policyholders’ surplus grew by 9%, marking the highest level for its capital, according to a...
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