North American Insurance Associations Affirm Support of NAFTA

DES PLAINES, Illinois, March 1 -- The Property Casualty Insurers Association of America issued the following news release:

The American Council of Life Insurers, American Insurance Association, Canadian Life and Health Insurance Association, Insurance Bureau of Canada, Mexican Association of Insurance Companies, Property Casualty Insurers Association of America and Reinsurance Association of America issued the following statement today on the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA).

As Canada, Mexico and the United States meet in Mexico City for the 7th round of negotiations, the North American insurance associations reaffirm our strong support for NAFTA, which has improved consumer access to innovative insurance products, bolstered competition by eliminating national ownership restrictions, and established a non-discriminatory government procurement process.

While the top priority must be to preserve the existing benefits of the Agreement, we support the ongoing effort to modernize the agreement and urge Canada, Mexico and the United States to engage constructively so that consumers and businesses can continue to benefit from NAFTA for decades to come. Specifically, it is essential that a modernized NAFTA contain strong investor protections, provide insurers with access to the full range of dispute settlement procedures, and introduce strong commitments on cross-border data flows and prohibitions on forced data localization for financial services providers, as long as data protection is guaranteed.

We encourage all negotiators to redouble their efforts to strengthen NAFTA while preserving and enhancing its existing benefits.