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A new LIMRA study finds just 21% of Americans have a favorable view of the economy, down from 25% in March 2020 and falling to less than half of the 56% reported in January 2020. The ongoing pandemic is chipping away at jobs and spending as millions remain unemployed.

A new study conducted by the Employee Benefit Research Institute finds that unmarried women had lower levels of retirement confidence than their married counterparts and were more likely to have fewer resources and be less prepared for retirement. The research also finds over half of unmarried women retired earlier than they expected.

Gov. Doug Ducey signed a bill Friday that requires financial professionals to act in the best interests of the consumer. Arizona becomes the second state to adopt best-interest rules modeled on a proposal the National Association of Insurance Commissioners sent to the states earlier this year.

A state regulator task force took another step Thursday toward agreement on rule changes designed to rein in index universal life insurance illustrations. In a straw poll vote, Life Actuarial Task Force members voted 13-3 to affirm that any changes will only apply to new IUL policies.

The COVID-19 pandemic has decimated the ranks of the U.S. workforce. Those who are working report feeling more financial stress than they did before the crisis. They also have a new appreciation for employee benefits, according to MetLife’s 18th annual U.S. Employee Benefit Trends Study.

More fee-based products, new channels and growth in direct-to-consumer sales are some trends Chip Roame expects in the coming years. Roame, managing partner of Tiburon Strategic Advisors, characterized insurance products as being in a natural transition phase.

Pro bono financial planning has always been a hallmark of the financial planning field, but it needs to be ingrained in everything we do. The next generation of financial planners need to embrace the importance and impact of pro bono just as the legal, medical, and dental professions have.

Department of Labor officials alerted the White House Monday that is has completed work on a reworked rule to regulate investment advice to workers and retirees. Known the “DOL fiduciary rule” when proposed by former President Barack Obama’s DOL, an appeals court tossed out the rule in 2018.

Over the past decade, U.S. life insurance ownership has fallen 9 percentage points to 54%, according to the 2020 Insurance Barometer Study. Researchers attribute the drop in ownership to a broad decline in employer-paid group life insurance benefits.

Already reeling from coronavirus pandemic losses, the property and casualty industry finds itself engulfed in another national calamity.