INSURANCE NEWSCAST "Headlines Only Edition" for: Thursday, 10/05/06

[acinatech@yahoo.com]

INSURANCE NEWSCAST can be read online at www.insurancebroadcasting.com

INSURANCE NEWSCAST "Headlines Only Edition" for: Thursday, 10/05/06  

Here is a quick look at the stories that will be in Thursday's INSURANCE NEWSCAST.

 

1) The Workplace Benefits Association ? The New Leader In Workplace Benefits Consulting & Advice -- Workplace Benefits Association Announces ?Build Your Own Sponsorship? (Part 4 0f 5) - The people and organizations involved in the sales and service of Workplace Benefits  have a premier opportunity to network and learn at the Workplace Benefits Renaissance Meeting to be held on the corner of Bourbon and Canal Street in the heart of the French Quarter at the Astor Crowne Plaza Hotel, New Orleans, La. The dates are February 13, 14, & 15, 2006.

 

2) Vimo Report Ranks Nation's Most Affordable Health Savings Accounts - Study Finds Higher Fees Don't Necessarily Mean Better HSA Returns Vimo.com, the Internet's leading healthcare comparison-shopping site, published a research report today that reveals wide disparity amongst the fees that HSA Banks charge their customers. The study also finds little correlation between high fees and high returns in HSAs, underlining the need for consumers to educate themselves and "shop around" before purchasing a new Health Savings Account.

 

3) T. Rowe Price Launches New Suite of Retirement Planning Services  - Low-Cost Advisory Offerings Address Saving for Retirement, Transitioning into Retirement, Managing Retirement Income, and Evaluating Your Portfolio

 

4) MFC Global Investment Management Targets Institutional Market in the U.S.   - Boston-based unit renamed, board membership changed --  MFC Global Investment Management ("MFC Global"), the diversified institutional investment management group of Manulife Financial Corporation of Toronto (Manulife), has re-branded its Boston-based investment management unit and has renewed its commitment to increase assets in the U.S. institutional marketplace.

 

5) Harris Investor Services Selects AdviceAmerica?s Financial Planning Platform to Enhance Client Service and Grow Revenue  - AdvisorVision® Arms Advisors with Powerful, Easy-to-Use Financial Planning Tools and Lead Generation Capabilities

 

6) Sun Life Financial Now Offers Statutory Short Term Disability Plans in New York and New Jersey  - The U.S. division of Sun Life Financial (NYSE: SLF, TSX: SLF) announced today that it now administers Disability Benefits Law (DBL) coverage in New York and Temporary Disability Benefits (TDB) in New Jersey.

 

7) NEW EXPERT COMMENTARY FROM IRMI.COM - There are now over 800 risk management and insurance articles on IRMI.com. Below you'll find summaries of some recent additions with links to the articles.

 

8) INSURANCE NEWSLINK ARTICLES - Recent articles added to INSURANCE NEWSLINK, the worldwide, strategic concise intelligence database of over 27,000 articles including interviews, uniquely analysed by company, market, research, regulatory, and IT topics. Please click here for a content overview and a 15-day free review.

 

9) Most Banking and Insurance Executives to Spend More for Anti-Money Laundering and Terrorist Financing Compliance, KPMG Study Finds   - Staff, Training, and IT will be Focus of Investment -- Banking and insurance executives overwhelmingly plan to spend more, especially on staff, to help strengthen their anti-money laundering (AML) and terrorist financing compliance programs, according to new research by the audit, tax and advisory firm KPMG LLP. Competition for experienced professionals, however, seems to be at an all-time high.

 

10) Chubb Deploys Commercial Loss Prevention Technology to Help Homeowners 'Spot' Water Damage and Fire Risks  - The Chubb Group of Insurance Companies (NYSE: CB) has launched Masterpiece(R) HomeScan, a complimentary infrared thermography service to help its homeowners policyholders "spot" moisture and electrical hotspots that, if left undetected, could lead to severe water damage and fire losses..

 

11) Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois Offers Tips for Choosing a Health Plan During Open Enrollment   - More Than 2 Million Illinois Residents Will Choose Their 2007 Health Plan This Fall; BCBSIL Urges Employees to Consider Options Carefully -- This fall, two million Illinois residents will make a potentially complex and difficult choice when they select health insurance coverage for themselves and their family members during open enrollment.

 

12) Aetna Expanding Medicare Availability and Enhancing Offerings for 2007 - announced today that for 2007 it is expanding the availability of its Medicare Advantage medical products to three new states, adding new counties within states it already serves, and providing Medicare Part D prescription drug products to auto-enrolled beneficiaries in an additional 28 states and the District of Columbia. In addition, the company will enhance its Medicare plan coverage and expand the ways people with Medicare can purchase its products.

 

13) Mutual of Omaha Makes FMLA Management Easier to Handle for Employers  - Administering Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) related absences can be confusing and time consuming for human resource managers. They can be especially frustrating for the HR managers of small employers, who often are placed in the difficult position of ensuring their company complies with all FMLA regulations.

 

14) Nation's Leading Health Benefits Company Launches Nationwide Partnership With America's Largest Retail Pharmacy   - WellPoint Partnership with CVS/pharmacy Designed to Educate Seniors, Provide Medicare Part D Enrollment Guidance in more than 5,800 Stores

 

15) Health Insurance Plan Tools Are Easing Health Care Cost Increases  - Center for Studying Health Systems Change Report Finds Growth in Health Care Spending Slowing for Fourth Straight Year; Growth in Prescription Drug Spending Slows for the Seventh Straight Year

 

16) The Hanover Insurance Group Simplifies, Speeds Homeowners Policy Quote and Issuance ?

-Streamlined Process Makes it Easier for Agents to do Business-

-Sets the Stage for New Homeowners Product, Connections(TM) Home-

 

17) VitalSpring Announces that SAP America, Inc. Implements its Solution to Manage Healthcare Costs   - VitalSpring Technologies, the innovator in health benefits performance software, today announced that SAP America, Inc. has completed the implementation of its solution to manage its health benefits across the enterprise. SAP Human Resource, Benefits and Finance executives will now obtain a single, integrated view of the various components of the company's benefits costs, so they can make more informed decisions.

 

18) Launch of Regence Dental Product Gives Consumers Reason to Smile  - New Option Provides Cost-effective Coverage to Help People Maintain Good Oral Health, Which Can Help Prevent More Serious Health Problems

 

19) HHS Approves New York Plan to Update Medicaid   - Reforms Promote Better Care and Lower Costs Through Community-Based Care -- HHS Secretary Mike Leavitt today approved a five-year, $3 billion experiment by New York State to reorient its Medicaid program to take care of more people in their homes and communities with an eye toward enhancing patient satisfaction, eliminating waste and improving the economic viability of the program.

 

20) INSURANCE NEWSCAST ?Pictures Of The Day?

 

21) North Star Mutual Insurance Enhances Customer Service with Modernized Applications on Unisys ClearPath Mainframe  - Web-Based Application and Decision Support Software Cut Quote Process from Days to Seconds While Pay-For-Use Economics Improve IT Ownership Costs

 

22) Duff & Phelps Opens a New Office in Munich   -- Duff & Phelps, one of the world's leading independent financial advisory firms, is pleased to announce the opening of a new office in Munich, Germany as part of its continued global expansion.

 

23) Actuaries: Cost of Nonsmokers' Exposure to Secondhand Smoke Nearly $6 Billion a Year  - The effects of secondhand smoke on nonsmokers in the United States cost nearly $6 billion in medical and economic costs in 2004 according to an actuarial study.    

 

24) MetLife Bank(R) Offers Tips and Free Materials to Help Women Save and Plan for the Future - When it comes to saving and investing for retirement, women are making tremendous strides. Female homeownership is at an all-time high--with one-fifth of residential real estate now being held by single females. Women are now the primary breadwinners in roughly one-third of U.S. households. Still, they are more likely to face shortfalls in retirement than their male counterparts.

 

25) ASPCA Launches ?ASPCA Pet Health Insurance? - Country?s First Pet Insurance Product Developed for a National Humane Organization --The ASPCA® (The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals®) today announced a brand-new offering that will improve the quality of life for pets and pet parents throughout the United States, and that comes with the backing of the country?s oldest animal welfare organization: ASPCA Pet Health Insurance. While pet insurance has been growing in popularity in recent years, this is the first product of its kind to be developed for and branded by a national animal welfare organization. For more information, please visit www.aspcapetinsurance.com.

 

26) Minnesota Life to offer group dental plans through Securian ? Two of the nation?s fastest-growing benefit providers -- Minnesota Life?s Group Insurance and DeCare Dental ? are pairing up to offer large employers unique employee benefits packages of life and dental insurance.

 

27) US Airways Selects RealLife HR for Online Benefits Administration Services - RealLife HRSM, a leading outsourced benefits management automation solution provider, today announced the addition of US Airways Group, Inc. to its growing list of clients.

 

28) HCR Announces Details of Latest Version of SalaryXL Compensation Management Solution  ? Human Capital Resources Software Solutions (HCRSS), an affiliate of The Janis Group Inc. (JGI), today announced version 2.2 of SalaryXL, the breakthrough application that allows companies to fully automate their salary planning processes by leveraging their familiar Excel spreadsheets and minimizing the change management challenges.

 

29) NEW ISO TOOL STREAMLINES UNDERWRITING RISK EVALUATION SYSTEMS - ISO has enhanced its Automobile-Property Loss Underwriting Service (A-PLUS?) system with Claim Standardization Codes, a powerful tool that eliminates the need for underwriters to review loss history reports manually. The Claim Standardization Codes will help carriers automate and improve underwriting risk evaluation and rating. 

 

30) THE MAIN STREET AMERICA GROUP SELECTS BRIGHTCLAIM FOR COMPREHENSIVE CLAIM SOLUTION ? BrightClaim, Inc. announced today The Main Street America Group, a super regional property-casualty insurance carrier, has selected BrightClaim to provide an exclusive, comprehensive solution for the management of its day-to-day claims administration for its more than 500,000 policyholders.

 

31) Tort Versus No-Fault Auto Reform Paradigm Is False Choice, NAMIC Policy Paper Claims ? The belief that the only way to reform the costly tort system is by adopting a no-fault law is a false choice, a new public policy paper issued today  by the National Association of Mutual Insurance Companies (NAMIC) concludes. 

 

32) Physicians Insurance Responds to OIC Consent Order ?Physicians Insurance A Mutual Company, an insurer that provides coverage to physicians and other health care providers, is pleased to announce that new internal systems and controls have resulted in the company solving all outstanding compliance issues. ?We have worked hard with the Office of the Insurance Commissioner (OIC) to successfully put our compliance house in order,? says Mary-Lou Misrahy, President and CEO of Physicians Insurance. ?Our success in doing so has resulted in bringing to a close any and all outstanding compliance issues with the OIC.?

 

33) Mutual of Omaha Makes FMLA Management Easier to Handle for Employers - Administering Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) related absences can be confusing and time consuming for human resource managers. They can be especially frustrating for the HR managers of small employers, who often are placed in the difficult position of ensuring their company complies with all FMLA regulations.

 

INSURANCE NEWSCAST from InsuranceBroadcasting.com
9221 Ravenna Road, Suite #D8, Twinsburg, OH 44087
888-282-1765   --- 330-425-8399