Americas

US health insurance costs continue to soar

Fri, Jul, 16 2010

Health reform or not, health insurance costs in the US are continuing to rise at an alarming pace, according to the Council of Insurance Agents & Brokers (CIAB).

US insurers on mend

Fri, Jul, 16 2010

Numerous year-on-year comparisons reveal that the US life insurance industry has experienced dramatic improvement in its financial condition, reports rating agency Moody’s Investors Service.

US insurers largely passed by regulatory reform

Fri, Jul, 16 2010

Reform of US financial regulation has taken a leap forward following the approval of the 2,000 page Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act by the House of Representatives. With the bill’s passage through the House, state insurance regulators are breathing a sigh of relief that its focus is primarily draconian banking regulation reform and leaves their authority largely unchanged.

Disgraced AIG execs proclaim their innocence

Fri, Jul, 16 2010

Though he has avoided prosecution, Joseph J Cassano, the former head of American International Group’s Financial Products (AIG-FP) unit, is still fighting to restore his reputation, tarnished by what is seen as his pivotal role in the US insurer’s near-collapse.

Catholic insurers join forces in the US

Fri, Jul, 16 2010

Consolidation of a slightly unusual nature has just occurred in the US, with the merger of two life insurers focused on the Catholic community, Catholic Knights and Catholic Family Life Insurance. The merger follows approval by the State of Wisconsin’s commissioner of insurance and creates the second-largest Catholic fraternal organisation in the US.

Conseco pays up

Fri, Jul, 16 2010

An unpleasant situation involving Conseco Life has been resolved, with the US insurer agreeing to reimburse aggrieved holders of its Lifetrend universal life product. Under the settlement, Conseco Life will establish a $10 million fund for aggrieved policyholders and pay a $1 million penalty to states participating in the settlement.

Pan-American Life gets go-ahead in Costa Rica

Fri, Jul, 16 2010

Pan-American Life Insurance Group (PAL), a US insurer focused on the Hispanic market, has increased its reach with the receipt of a licence to operate in Costa Rica from the Central American country’s insurance regulator, the Superintendencia General de Seguros.

Californian insurers toe the Poizner line

Fri, Jul, 16 2010

Despite strong opposition from some quarters, Californian insurers appear to be heeding California insurance commissioner Steve Poizner’s order that they sell Iran-related shares in their portfolios.

Lincoln Financial repays US government

Fri, Jul, 16 2010

Lincoln Financial Group (LFG), one of the US life insurers hardest-hit by the financial crisis, has taken a key step towards normalising its balance sheet with the repayment in full of a $950 million support package extended to it by the US Treasury under its Capital Purchase Program. Repayment took the form of LFG’s repurchase of preferred shares it issued to the Treasury.

US insurers failing at online service

Fri, Jul, 16 2010

Four out of five Americans (83 percent) are likely to resolve any issues they experience in purchasing or processing a health insurance claim online by reaching for the phone. This emerges from a study conducted by research firm Ipsos Public Affairs (IPA) for business transaction management technology specialist OpTier.