Advisers Latest

Americans are slowly shifting toward buying insurance direct rather than meeting with an insurance professional face-to-face. More than one in four adults prefer to purchase life insurance online, over the phone or through the mail, according to a New LIFE and LIMRA study released Wednesday.

Rural Americans are more likely to suffer from chronic health conditions such as diabetes, heart problems and cancer, and face greater difficulty getting quality health care than their urban counterparts, according to a report released Wednesday.

The majority of Generation X and Y policy owners and almost half of Boomer policy owners who have visited their life company’s website sought online services from their insurers, according to LIMRA. “With Internet usage growing almost 150% in the last decade, it is vital that companies understand who their online audience is and what their expectations are and develop a website that offers the important services that these customers say they want,” says Mary Art, LIMRA research director, technology in marketing and distribution research.

Advisers are more confident than they have been since January, but they still report being concerned over the disconnect in the marketplace, according to The Advisor Confidence Index, a benchmark that gauges adviser views on the U.S. economy and stock market.

The Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services is nearly ready to issue a proposed rule requiring health insurers to develop standardized, consumer-friendly summaries of benefits and coverage under their health plan packages.

Louisiana Sen. Mary L. Landrieu urges Department of Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius to remove agent compensation from the medical loss ratio rule.

A new bill introduced in the Senate last week could help consumers keep their employer-sponsored flexible spending account funds at the end of the year.

Rates for cybersecurity insurance edged lower in the last few months despite surging demand, as heavy competition brewed among insurers rushing into the market in search of the next profitable product, insurance brokers Marsh said on Wednesday.

Here’s a recent list of personnel accomplishments in the insurance industry.

I read your Movers & Shakers piece in the July 2011 EBA (“Maryland exchange provides brokers a link to prospects,” p.64). Unfortunately, while the interview with the developers of VIRTUAL COMPARE put a very positive spin on their product, your piece didn't really explore the product objectively.