Senate Says No To Repeal-Only Plan

Senate Republicans continue their bid to dismantle the Affordable Care Act (ACA) by considering an array of health care measures in the hope that they can get enough votes to pass one of them.

In an indication of just how challenging repealing the Affordable Care Act will be, the Senate swatted down a broad Republican-drafted health care bill hours after opening debate — the first in a series of votes expected in the days ahead.

Senate Republicans voted Tuesday afternoon to move forward on repealing the Affordable Care Act.

It seemed unlikely Republicans would bring McCain cross country if they didn’t think his vote would make a difference, and his mere presence could make it harder for wavering Republicans to cast a vote against even considering the bill.

A pilot, Direct-to-Consumer annuity offering by Nationwide is generating plenty of useful data about consumer habits and their needs to speak to live advisors.

President Donald Trump has sent a flurry of mixed messages, raising questions about the White House strategy on health care. Democrats say Trump’s confusing signals are part of a strategy to destabilize the Affordable Care Act, in order to force a repeal.

Detractors are already saying Anthony Scaramucci is unprepared to face withering fire as White House communications chief, but the former hedge-funder has been in battle for some time.

Indexed universal life rate projections become slightly less rosy, with about a half percentage point drop on average, according to a Milliman study.

The Department of Labor could delay phase two of its controversial fiduciary rule by two years, analysts say. Phase two is slated to take effect Jan. 1, 2018, but could be delayed by one year, with financial services getting a year beyond that to comply.

Now that Senate Republicans have failed in their attempt to repeal and replace Obamacare and cut Medicaid, House Republicans are pushing a budget that aims to do all that and then some. The end goal is tax reform, but detractors say the plan isn’t going anywhere.

The Department of Labor fiduciary rule’s harshest mandates will for sure be delayed beyond the Jan. 1, 2018 effective date, a panel of experts agreed today. Whether those mandates are softened or not remains to be seen.

Little disruption to clients reported by advisors as they transition to the full Department of Labor fiduciary rules, a new survey finds. Though more changes are expected if the rule is implemented as written on Jan. 1, for now the rules appear marginally disruptive.

Republicans are expressing embarrassment, fear and frustration as party leaders concede that their years-long promise to erase much of Barack Obama’s Affordable Care Act is all but dead. Now discussion turns to what comes next?

The implosion of the Senate Republican health care bill leaves a divided GOP with its flagship legislative priority in tatters and confronts a wounded President Donald Trump and congressional leaders with dicey decisions about addressing their perhaps unattainable seven-year-old promise of repealing the Affordable Care Act.

Two more Senate Republicans have declared their opposition to the latest plan to overhaul the nation’s health-care system, potentially ending a months-long effort to make good on a GOP promise that has defined the party for nearly a decade and been a top priority for President Trump.

With regulation, technology and other factors creating great change within the industry, financial advisors have plenty of career choices to consider. Fee-based and dually registered advisors are expected to fare well in the coming years.

Republican critics of the Senate’s latest version of health care legislation were energized after leaders postponed votes on the measure, yet another sign the bill’s fortunes are in limbo.

A draft House appropriations bill for the Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) would defund the health insurance navigators program.

Fee-based consolidators of investment advisors are closing bigger and bigger M&A deals, analysts say. Seven of the top 10 brokers measured by AUM who moved from the captive channel to the independent channel between 2009-15 move to consolidators.

A new bill by Rep. Ann Wagner, R-Mo., draws mixed reviews at a House subcommittee hearing today. The bill would scrap the Department of Labor fiduciary rule in favor of a more industry friendly standard.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has released a revamped Republican health care bill, and it seeks out conservative support by letting insurers sell low-premium policies with skimpy coverage. But the GOP plan remains in deep jeopardy because of divisions within the party.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell plans to unveil a revised bill Thursday repealing much of the 2010 Affordable Care Act despite no visible signs that leaders have rounded up enough GOP support to win its passage.

President Donald J. Trump has vowed to ease or get rid of regulations across the business world. So why are government agencies ramping up investigations of registered investment advisors?

GOP leaders set to introduce a revised health care plan Thursday that retains two Affordable Care Act taxes on the wealthy to pay for expanded coverage. Will conservatives go for the compromise plan?

Nearly a quarter (24.6 percent) of the U.S. population ages 0 to 17 years old was Hispanic in 2015, an increase from 17.1 percent in 2000, new data finds. This demographic is historically underserved by life insurance.

Senate Republicans are feeling the pressure from both conservatives and moderates over its bill to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act. Some say a vote could happen next week; Others say bill is dead.

The annual rate of retirement health care costs is growing (5.47 percent) at double the annual growth rate of Social Security cost-of-living adjustments, a new study finds. What can clients do to prepare?

New annuity research tool by Beacon Annuity Solutions will help advisors demonstrate that their recommendations are in the best interest of clients, a company executive says.

As part of its review of the Obama administration’s fiduciary rule, Department of Labor regulators are expected to consider returning fixed indexed annuities to a less-stringent exemption.

The Department of Labor is prepared to help advisors survive under the new fiduciary rules by possibly carving out new exemptions and amending existing ones, according to documents published Thursday. Is it the lifeline the industry seeks?

Assets gathered by multi-family offices grew 13 percent annually over the three-year period ending in 2015, according to new data. That surpasses the growth in the hot registered investment advisor (RIA) field. What does it mean?

Any thoughts that new Labor Secretary Alexander Acosta would decline to defend the controversial fiduciary rule went out the window with a brief filed Monday in the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.

The Department of Labor announced two new comment periods Friday — 15 and 30 days — on different aspect of its controversial fiduciary rule. Will the rule go fully into effect?

The New York Department of Financial Services is requiring more than 3,000 financial institutions to implement a formal cybersecurity policy to address the rising threat of cyberattacks.

President Donald Trump said he may support legislation that would repeal the Affordable Care Act while holding off on a Republican replacement for the 2010 health care law.

Republican senators fled Washington without a clear resolution on health care, leaving them to face voters back home after having failed to make their own self-imposed deadline for repealing Obamacare.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is exploring options for salvaging the battered Republican health care bill, even keeping some of the ACA tax hikes in a bid to soften the impact on the poor.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell is aiming to send a revised version of his health care bill to the Congressional Budget Office as soon as Friday as he continues to push for a vote before Congress’s August recess.

Fee-based registered financial advisors (RIA) and dually-registered advisors are growing much faster than commission-based independent representatives. Industry pressures are reshaping how investment advice is delivered, experts say.

The Republican Party’s long-promised repeal of the Affordable Care Act stands in limbo after Senate GOP leaders, short of support, abruptly shelved a vote on legislation to fulfill the promise.

Senate Republicans will delay voting on a replacement bill for the Affordable Care Act until after the July 4 recess.

The SEC is hinting at taking up fiduciary rulemaking. New Chairman Jay Clayton kicked off the process June 1 by soliciting public comment. Investors and advisors responded with concerns.

The Senate’s proposal to repeal the Affordable Care Act would leave 22 million more Americans uninsured over the next 10 years. That’s according to a Congressional Budget Office (CBO) analysis of the bill.

Chicago-based Bankers Life is recasting a narrowly-focused captive insurance distribution approach into a holistic advisory one. It is developing a higher-caliber advisor force in the process, execs say.

The revision includes a provision to encourage Americans to maintain continuous coverage.

Senate Republicans are facing down an increasingly daunting challenge to secure the votes necessary to pass legislation to dramatically change the Affordable Care Act, and several senators said they would like more time to debate and tweak the plan as GOP leaders push for a vote this week.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell has finally unwrapped his plan for dismantling the Affordable Care Act. Now comes his next challenge — persuading enough Republicans to back the measure and avert a defeat that would be shattering for President Donald Trump and the GOP.

The Department of Labor fiduciary rule has not had a major impact on annuity sales yet, say execs with a top Midwest insurer. The second phase of the rule, which takes effect Jan. 1, 2018, will likely be a different story, they add.

Get ready for drama-filled days of mock hand-wringing, political jockeying and backroom brinkmanship as the Senate GOP health care plan heads toward a hoped-for vote next week.

Senate Republican leaders released the details of their bill to repeal the Affordable Care Act (ACA) and replace it with a version that would end employer and individual mandates while changing the way tax credits are offered to help people buy coverage.

Financial advisor trade associations are racing to offer new training programs to expand their reach to life insurance professionals operating in foreign markets. In particular, Asia is an area of immense interest.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has vowed to hold a vote on the health care bill before the July 4 recess. He can lose two GOP senators, but must hold the rest of his party together to pass the bill.

IMOs and FMOs should be fine to sell variable and fixed indexed annuities under the transition Best Interest Contract for the rest of the year, a pair of experts say. But a definitive word is unknown.

Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell said Republicans will release a discussion draft of their version of the health care bill on Thursday.

Evidence is mounting that advisors are more likely to include health care spending as a topic to be included in retirement planning. A new report indicates a 65-year-old couple retiring today will need $404,000 for health care costs.

New fixed-indexed annuity products with shorter seven-year surrender periods are driving down commissions, new data shows. First-quarter indexed annuity commissions dropped to 4.96 percent from 5.37 percent a year ago.

Senate Democrats ramped up opposition to the emerging Republican health-care bill, launching a series of mostly symbolic moves including speeches that went late into the evening and a push to slow other Senate business to a crawl.

While financial advisory fees have undergone some compression, they remain surprisingly robust in mid-2017 and should stay that way for the foreseeable future, a new paper predicts.

Financial planners say pressure from taxes and regulation are making them less likely to recommend life and annuity products. Can these products adapt and thrive beyond 2017?