LUTHERAN MERGER – Aid Association for Lutherans and Lutheran Brotherhood will merge by the end of the year.  The merged organization will have almost 3 million members, with almost $60 billion in assets under management. No name yet for the merged entity.

VIRTUAL DEATH – The virtual bank concept appears to be in trouble. Experts say traditional banks are best positioned to take advantage of online banking because customers expect access through branch offices, ATMs, etc.

DEMUTUALIZED STOCK – Now that Phoenix Home Life has completed its initial public offering, it will be distributing an estimated 56.2 million shares of Phoenix common stock to about 500,000 eligible policyholders. Several demutualized stocks have done quite well (Met's shares doubled in a year), so policyholders might want to hold on to the stock and see what happens. Same advice might be wise for Prudential policyholders.
 

GOT A DIME? – Washington Mutual soon will.  The top U.S. savings and loan company is buying Dime Bank for $5.2 billion in cash and stock.  Sure hope they don't change the name.  This country needs a Dime Bank!

NEW MORTALITY TABLE – The National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) is moving to replace the outdated 1980 Commissioner's Standard Ordinary (CSO) life insurance mortality table with a new 2001 CSO table by the end of the year.  The new table is expected to reduce life insurers' reserve requirements by about 20%, which could increase companies' taxable income.  An increase in taxable income could, however, be offset by decreasing premiums.

IRISH PROTECTIVE – Protective Life is set to buy two U.S. insurers (Inter-State Assurance Company and First Variable Life Insurance) from Irish Life.

RACIAL DISCRIMINATION – A federal court refused to dismiss a discrimination lawsuit, ruling that MetLife must defend itself against allegations that it charged blacks more than whites for insurance. The claim is that MetLife overcharged a woman it insured from the 1940s.  Prudential is facing similar charges and American General recently agreed to settle similar claims by paying out $206 million in refunds to policyholders.

PILL PAID – Citing a bias against women, a U.S. District Court judge has ordered that the cost of birth control pills be covered by an employee health insurance plan.  The specific plan in question covered almost all drugs and devices used by men only. The case is the first challenge to a private company that didn't include oral contraceptives in its health plan and could be a precedent.  Women's groups have not been pleased that Viagra is being covered by health plans, while the "pill" is not.
 

FIGHTING FRAUD – In an effort to combat financial fraud, the House of Representatives' Financial Services Committee has proposed creating a new computer network to link together the more than 200 separate state and federal agencies currently sharing responsibility for financial regulation in the U.S.  The regulators would have two years to set up a system to share criminal data.

NO GENETIC DECLINATIONS – If President Bush has his way, employers and insurance companies will be prohibited from denying jobs or health coverage to people based on their genes.  We doubt this will mean the end of the "family medical history" on applications...but it might.

BLUE DEMUTUALIZATION – Anthem Insurance, a health insurer that covers members in Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans in eight states, plans to become a publicly-traded company. It will need approval from its members (who will receive compensation if the plan is approved), as well as from regulators.  The move would make Anthem the fifth largest publicly-traded health insurer in the U.S., behind Aetna, UnitedHealth, Cigna, and WellPoint.

MAXICARE DELISTED – Maxicare Health Plans has been delisted from the Nasdaq, but is being traded on the "Pink Sheets" at http://www.pinksheets.com. This follows the California Department of Managed Health Care's appointment of a conservator and a Chapter 11 reorganization of its sub, Maxicare (California).

INSWEB STOCK – Believing that the current market price for its stock understates the company's current and long-term value, InsWeb will repurchase up to 1 million shares of its stock over the next six months.

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MORE TAX CUTS? – Democratic control of the Senate has dashed hopes for a large tax-relief bill for business.  Expect, however, to see some business-related tax breaks in exchange for an increase in the minimum wage.

INTERNET CUSTOMER SERVICE – Paragon Life, a MetLife company, will provide their Group Variable Universal Life (GVUL) customers with Web access to policy information, as well as for policy service, account allocation, etc. Paragon Life specializes in providing group variable universal life insurance programs for highly-compensated employees. Expect to see more companies making these services available to policyholders.

LIFE'S UPS AND DOWNS – LIMRA International's first quarter survey of individual life insurance sales shows a 4% increase in premium over the first quarter of last year, with a sharp decline (24%) in term sales and strong premium growth for Variable Universal Life (19%) and Universal Life (15%). For details visit LIMRA at http://www.limra.com.

CONVERSION TIME? – The current market slump might make this the perfect time to convert regular IRAs to Roth IRAs.  Since income taxes must be paid on amounts converted to Roth IRAs, it might make sense to convert when the value of the regular IRA is depressed.  The Roth IRA then grows tax free, with future withdrawals of both principal and earnings also tax free. 
 

LTC...STILL A SLEEPING GIANT – The Long Term Care market is finally coming of age and opportunities abound. Success in selling this product, like any product, requires knowledge.  KnowledgeDigest has a great collection of articles; check them out by clicking here.

ONLINE SELECTION TESTS – The full complement of recruiting and selection tools offered by LIMRA International us now available online at http://www.exseltoolkit.com. Advantages are obvious: no software to install and maintain, no test booklets or answer sheets, candidates can take tests at their convenience from any PC with an Internet connection and test results are instantly calculated and available.

UNHAPPY – Both U.S. consumer groups and some lawmakers are unhappy with the millions of privacy notices being mailed to consumers by banks, brokers and insurance companies, labeling them as "unintelligible gibberish."  Consumer groups plan to petition the Federal Trade Commission to require clearer explicit disclosure of consumers' opt-out rights and to make it easier for them to exercise those rights.  

HAVES AND HAVE-NOTS – According to Investment News, "top financial advisers earned a healthy $153,000 in median annual pay last year despite the bear market, but the chasm between the haves and have-nots was gaping," with investment advisers receiving a median $65,000, financial planners $60,000 and portfolio managers $50,000.  The Financial Planning Association (FPA) 2001 compensation study provided the data.  

TRUE HEALTH INSURANCE COST – Just how much does the average family pay for health insurance? According to eHealthInsurance, it is generally less expensive than previously thought...$1,200-$1,500 per person per year. This fits well with the Republican tax credit proposal of $1,000 per person or $2,500 for a family. See the eHealthInsurance study at http://www.ehealthinsurance.com. On the other hand, a Georgetown University study says the figure is closer to $3,996 a year. Further, "just because you need to buy medical coverage doesn't mean you can. The $1,000 credit that has been suggested by some would be a drop in the bucket for people looking at $3,000 to $30,000 in premiums per year, plus out-of-pocket costs for doctors visits and prescriptions."