Newsletter 55 / April 2008
Newsletter 55 / April 2008
In this issue
Industry News: NAMIC Urges Caution on Proposal to Create Federal Insurance Office | Read More
Course Info: New Course – “Florida Insurance Legislation: Keeping Up” | Read More
industrynews
NAMIC Urges Caution on Proposal to Create Federal Insurance Office
Creating a federal insurance regulatory agency could be a slippery slope to dual regulation that would ultimately hurt consumers, warned the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies (NAMIC). NAMIC urges those who support federal regulation of insurance to proceed with caution.During a hearing before the House Financial Service Committee’s Capital Markets Subcommittee on April 16, Chairman Paul Kanjorski (D-Pa.) said he’d introduce a bill to create an interim federal insurance oversight agency – the Office of Insurance Information or OII – within the U.S. Treasury Department. The interim office would focus on gathering information about the insurance industry and coordinating with state regulators on pressing insurance regulatory issues.”While we’ve not had the opportunity to thoroughly review the legislation, NAMIC is concerned this proposal could be a first step in the move toward a federal regulator,” said Justin Roth, NAMIC’s senior federal affairs director. “For many small- and medium-sized insurance companies, the proposed OII could create an additional layer of bureaucracy as they will have to comply with potential reporting requirements of the new office. This smacks of the beginnings of dual regulation.”Roth said consumers would bear the brunt. “We only have to look as far as the current system of health insurance regulation to see the confusion that is created by dual regulation,” he said. “For insurance consumers, it could also mean fewer products and higher costs.”During the hearing, Chairman Kanjorski said an OII would help Congress become better educated about insurance policy. He said the experiences of Sept. 11, Hurricane Katrina, and the ongoing problems in the bond insurance marketplace have highlighted that need.”Advice and counsel on issues affecting the insurance industry are currently available, as evidenced by the involvement of federal officials in a variety of issues, including terrorism and natural catastrophe risk,” Roth said. “Creation of a new bureaucratic entity is not warranted at this time.”Should the feds take over insurance regulation? Sound off on this continuing controversy. Join the debate today on our blog at www.blogceu.com (or just click the “Enter blog” link on the ceu.com home page) and post your comments.Source: www.namic.org
courseinfo
New Course – “Florida Insurance Legislation: Keeping Up”
CEU.com has introduced a course examining the recent legislative changes in property and casualty insurancein Florida. This course covers developments from 2005 through 2007, and it explores current issues facing P & C licensees in that state including changes in continuing education requirements and licensing laws. This comprehensive course also covers hurricane mitigation legislation, property insurance legislative reform, consumer protection laws (including those that are particularly relevant to Florida as well as those that affect the nation as a whole), workers’ compensation, and automobile insurance.To sign up for this course or to view our complete course catalog, visit us at www.ceu.com.
