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US Economy Is Like Rocky: No Recession, But Expect A Beating

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A leading economist compares the U.S. economy to the 1976 movie "Rocky."

The U.S. economy remains healthy, and Vanguard is sticking with its prediction for only one more interest rate hike by the Federal Reserve in 2019, chief economist Joseph Davis said. Vanguard’s model predicts a less than 50 percent change of recession in 2019, he added.

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Sammons Financial Group will lay off an unspecified number of employees during the first quarter of 2019. The company cited efficiencies and automation as reasons behind the layoffs, which follow last month’s announcement of layoffs by Nationwide.

A.M. Best recently met with the Ohio National management team to discuss a series of recent events, including the insurer being sued several times for a decision to end trail commissions on certain annuities. A.M. Best is sticking with its strong ratings for now.

More regulation, changing compensation and the erosion of public trust are the top reasons many brokers/registered reps say they are considering striking out on their own via the independent channel. Nearly half of respondents to a new survey say they expect the brokerage channel to deteriorate.

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Jan. 16– The rollercoaster otherwise known as the stock market did not diverge from its usual operations in 2018, as investors saw an up-and-down year and likely expect the same in 2019.. The markets then had a post-Christmas rally, as the Dow saw its biggest one-day gain Dec. 26, with over 1,080 points; the S&P rose 4.9 percent; and the Nasdaq closed up at 5.8 percent.

DEERFIELD, Ill., and REDMOND, Wash.– Jan. 15, 2019– Walgreens Boots Alliance Inc. and Microsoft Corp. have joined forces to develop new health care delivery models, technology and retail innovations to advance and improve the future of health care. “Improving health outcomes while lowering the cost of care is a complex challenge that requires broad collaboration…
An average couple entering retirement at age 65 faces expensive future costs of care. The challenge is particularly stark for women, who face higher lifetime costs due to longer life expectancies.

Benefits were paid on more than 303,000 policies and passed the $10 billion mark for the first time. According to a trade association, in 2017, total claims amounted to $9.2 billion paid to about 295,000 individuals.

Jan. 10– Damage from the Camp Fire was the costliest disaster in the world last year, topping out at $12.5 billion in insured losses, according to a new report by global reinsurance firm Munich RE. The Germany- based company said it had expected losses to be lower this year after a record-breaking 2017, in which insurers paid out about $230 billion worldwide.

Securian Financial has launched SecureOption ® Choice, a new fixed deferred annuity designed to give financial professionals a competitive edge in the multi-year guaranteed annuity marketplace. SecureOption ® Choice is available to all Securian Financial- approved distribution channels. These ratings are assigned to the following Securian…

US Commercial Rates Up in Fourth Quarter 2018 Measured approach yields steady market The US commercial insurance composite rate averaged…
The Western & Southern headquarters in Cincinnati.

The purchase includes a long-term license to use certain Gerber Life intellectual property, including the Gerber Life name and logo, in connection with certain financial services. The deal brings a leading direct-to-consumer life insurer to Western & Southern’s diversified family of financial services businesses.
The life insurance industry continues to go through transitions and disruptions. But agents are still needed, a new survey finds.

Consumers may go online to get information about life insurance, but advice from an agent is still a big part of the insurance-buying process. That was the word from Deloitte’s annual Insurance Industry Outlook for 2019.
The Affordable Care Act is gaining popularity with Americans.

Democratic state attorneys general from 18 states filed a motion Monday night challenging a Texas federal judge’s ruling that struck down the Affordable Care Act. The motion, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas, asks the court to clarify the impact of the ruling and confirm that the ACA is still the law of the land.
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Sammons Financial Group will lay off an unspecified number of employees during the first quarter of 2019. The company cited efficiencies and automation as reasons behind the layoffs, which follow last month’s announcement of layoffs by Nationwide.
Insider

A shutdown happens when Congress and the White House can’t agree on a deal to fund the federal government. Most employees at the US space agency NASA would likely be furloughed and might not get paid for that time, although Congress usually grants pay retroactively after a shutdown is over. Congress already approved funding this year for about 75 percent of the…
Retirees are greatly concerned about their retirement and health care costs.

Fewer than half of retirees agree that they have built a large enough retirement nest egg, with only 16 percent “strongly” agreeing and 30 percent “somewhat” agreeing, according to a new survey by nonprofit Transamerica Center for Retirement Studies.

-Oscar Insurance Company to Pay Fine of $576,950 for Failing to Adhere to Deadlines for Utilization Reviews, Failing to Include Explanations of Adverse Determination Notices and Failing to Include Forfeiture Language in Benefit Statements. Aetna Health Inc., Aetna Health Insurance Company of New York and Aetna Life Insurance Company will pay a civil…
An Alabama insurance agent committed fraud against a client, prosecutors say.

An Illinois man serving 45 years in prison for the murder of his wife has failed in his bid to overturn his conviction on appeal. Chad Cutler had purchased $700,000 of additional life insurance on his wife shortly before her death, prosecutors said at trial.
Many Americans think retirement is not a realistic option, surveys show.

Nearly one in five (18%) respondents said they will include financial planning in their resolutions for next year, with millennials once again leading the way at 27 percent. Fewer Americans are troubled about financial issues like stagnant wages (23%) and job security (18%) than they were in 2017 (30% and 26%, respectively).

Cutler was elected tax collector in 2013 in East Lampeter Township, Lancaster County, by one vote 2018– his own write-in vote. Though East Lampeter had not had a tax collector in decades– the county did the job– Cutler insisted he was now an elected official under the law, and began to work as township tax collector. “It was about an eight-month accounting nightmare…
Millennials want to work with insurance agents, a new Nationwide survey finds.

Sixty-nine percent of Millennial business owners work with an insurance agent, followed by Boomers at 66 percent and Gen X at 59 percent. The most common reason for working with an insurance agent among all generations is the trust that business owners place on the guidance and expertise from an agent.

Dec. 11– Horace Mann Educators Corp. announced Monday it has signed a deal to acquire a Dallas- based insurance company for $405 million. The company will acquire National Teachers Associates Life Insurance Company, a family-owned firm that specializes in supplemental insurance products for teachers. NTA has about 220 agents nationwide and had about $130…
The outlook for life insurance and annuities in 2019 is good, according to analysts.

AM Best cited increased profitability, improved regulatory and tax environments and a strengthening U.S. economy in adjusting its 2019 life insurance/annuities outlook from negative to stable. Also, an overall reduced balance sheet risk due to a proactive approach taken by companies in recent years is seen as a positive trend.
Health spending slowed by 1 percentage point between 2016 and 2017, the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services reported.

Overall national health spending grew at a rate of 3.9 percent in 2017, almost 1 percentage point slower than growth in 2016, according to a study conducted by the Office of the Actuary at the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services

His crimes lasted roughly 45 years, according to FBI agents now speaking publicly about the case for the first time, a decade after Madoff’s arrest. Special Agent Patrick J. Duffy of the Federal Bureau of Investigation helped oversee the government’s probe. A South Jersey native and 2002 LaSalle University graduate, Duffy worked as a KPMG accountant in…

–People would rather talk about anything other than money, including marriage problems, mental illness, drug addiction, race, sex, politics and religion. In a survey of 1,202 American adults conducted by Capital Group, home of American Funds, and one of the world’s leading investment management firms, survey participants ranked financial topics such as…
Ohio National headquarters in Cincinnati.
Exclusive

A.M. Best recently met with the Ohio National management team to discuss a series of recent events, including the insurer being sued several times for a decision to end trail commissions on certain annuities. A.M. Best is sticking with its strong ratings for now.
Non-variable UL sales were down in the third quarter, according to Wink Inc.

Non-variable universal life sales – including both indexed UL and fixed UL – were more than $852.4 million in the third quarter. This was down 11 percent when compared to the previous quarter and down more than 15.6 percent as compared to the same period last year, according to Wink Inc.

Seema Verma is the current administrator of the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services.

Under this new guidance, states are empowered to innovate new health care programs aimed at strengthening their health insurance markets, expanding choices of coverage, and targeting public resources to those most in need.

Through this new fully integrated platform, consumers and brokers will be able to go directly to the approved enrollment partner’s website to for the entire application and enrollment experience without being redirected to HealthCare.gov.

Walgreens and Humana are reportedly in talks to expand their partnership.

Humana and Walgreens are reportedly in talks to expand their current partnership, The Wall Street Journal reported.
Rising interest rates helped propel annuity sales in the third quarter.

Recent increases in annuity rates, coupled with incentives being offered by product manufacturers have translated to sales momentum, according to Wink’s Sales and Market Report.
Consumers and their advisors now have plenty of options to secure guaranteed income for life.

A new LIMRA Secure Retirement Institute study of annuity owners finds the top two reasons consumers buy annuities are to supplement Social Security/pension income and to receive guaranteed income payments for life.

The American Council of Life Insurers issued the following news release:. These and other industry highlights are included in the American Council of Life Insurers 2018 Life Insurers Fact Book released today. “The new data tells a familiar but important story- life insurers provide invaluable assistance to American families and the U.S. economy,” said ACLI…

Third Way said in its report three of four key battleground states President Donald Trump won in 2016– Michigan, Pennsylvania and Florida– struggled to provide enough middle- and upper-class opportunity. Minnesota and Iowa also ranked in the top 20.. Rochester is close to the Mayo Clinic, and Cleveland is near the Cleveland Clinic.

Halloween 2017 continued the year-over-year trend of delivering more tricks than treats for auto owners as a report for the days leading up to and after the holiday revealed an increase in auto claims, according to Mercury Insurance.

U.S. consumer confidence rose again this month, hitting a new 18-year high. The Conference Board says its consumer confidence index climbed to 137.9 in October from 135.3 in September. Both readings are the highest since September 2000. The index measures consumers’ assessment of current economic conditions and their outlook for the next six months.

Apple Inc.’ s new watch is the latest proof: Big Tech is trying to remake health care in its own image. Apple has already pushed the use of its mobile devices for health tracking and medical research, and recently added a feature that can connect to some hospital medical-records systems. Tech giants such as Apple, Amazon.com Inc., Microsoft Corp. and Google have to…

Fiat Chrysler is offering free health care for most of its employees and their families-about 22,000 people-through a clinic the carmaker opened this summer near one of five factories it operates in the area. The idea: Spend more now to improve care and eventually pare the more than $100 million Fiat Chrysler Automobiles pays annually for health care, just in…

–Nearly half of consumers have abandoned a medication prescribed by their physician because it was too expensive, according to a survey released today by DrFirst, the nation’s leading provider of e-prescribing and patient medication management solutions. According to the findings, as little as $10 in savings would motivate 38 percent of respondents to…

Aetna, which got a step closer this month to completing its $69 billion merger with CVS Health this month, is reporting better-than-expected profits and revenue. The company on Tuesday reported third-quarter net income of $1 billion, or $3.03 per share. Earnings, adjusted for non-recurring gains, were $2.96 per share, or 12 cents better than Wall Street had expected, according to a survey by Zacks Investment Research.

Health analysts say that at least one of the efforts, coupled with previous changes initiated by the administration, could help transform the insurance market to be much more like it was before the 2010 federal health law took effect – when regulation, coverage and consumer protections varied widely across the United States.

Insurance shoppers likely will have several choices for individual health coverage this fall. There’ s no guarantee they will cover certain doctors or prescriptions. “People understand that things are kind of screwed up,” said Chicago- area broker Robert Slayton.“ My objective is to give them what reality is, to give them options.

The U.S. economy grew at a 3.5 percent annual growth rate in the third quarter, considered strong but lower than the 4.2 percent rate at which it grew in the second quarter, according to a U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis report.

—LPL Financial Holdings Inc. on Thursday reported third-quarter net income of $106.9 million. Three analysts surveyed by Zacks expected $1.3 billion. LPL Financial shares have fallen 5 percent since the beginning of the year.