Tag: ACLI

Comments on Request for Information on Uses, Opportunities, and Risks of Artificial Intelligence in the Financial Services Sector

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://www.regulations.gov/document/TREAS-DO-2024-0011-0001/comment

Description:

Publicly available comments on Dept of Treasury’s request for information on AI use, opportunities & risk in financial services sector.

Example: https://www.regulations.gov/comment/TREAS-DO-2024-0011-0010 — comment from ACLI

The NAIC has developed its definition of AI, and the insurance industry has responded with
information in accordance with that definition. Any definition developed by Treasury should
align with, or at a minimum not conflict with, definitions of AI in existing regulatory
frameworks for financial institutions.

The Treasury definition of AI should reflect the following:
o Definitions should be tailored to the different types of AI and the use cases and
risks they pose. The definition used in this RFI is similar to an outdated definition put
forth by the Organization for Economic Coordination and Development (OECD),
which could be narrowed for specific use cases (e.g., tiering of risks under the EU
framework).
o There are also distinctions between generative AI used to make decisions, without
ultimately including human input or intervention, and AI used with human decisionmaking being absolute or the usage being solely for internal efficiencies and
therefore not impactful for customers.
o AI covers a broad range of predictive modeling techniques that would otherwise not
be considered Artificial Intelligence. A refinement to the definition that classifies AI
as machine learning systems that utilize artificial neural networks to make
predictions may be more appropriate.
o The definition of AI should exclude simpler computation tasks that companies have
been using for a long time.

Author(s): Various

Publication Date: accessed 9 Aug 2024

Publication Site: Regulations.gov

A Workplan to Identify & Remove Unnecessary Barriers to Producer Licensure

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://www.acli.com/-/media/acli/public/files/news-release-pdfs/workplan_barrierstoproducerlicensure09192022_final.pdf

Graphic:

Excerpt:

There have been recent efforts by the NAIC to report on the steps exam vendors have taken to mitigate
cultural bias in producer licensing exams; however, based on state-level data, this issue deserves closer
attention.


There are only seven states that annually prepare and publish licensing exam pass rates by
demographic, including race/ethnicity. For more than a decade, these reports have routinely shown
Caucasian/white candidates scoring higher than other demographic groups across nearly all lines.


When comparing Life Insurance Exam Pass Rates by Race/Ethnicity, an alarming trend appears. It’s clear
that non-Caucasians or non-white demographics are not efficiently making it through the licensing
process. This clearly suggests licensing exams warrant more scrutiny, particularly to ensure these tests
are not screening diversity from the industry.

Author(s): ACLI, NAIFA, Finseca

Publication Date: Sept 2022

Publication Site: ACLI

Life Groups Calls on States to Review Agent Exam Difficulty

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://www.thinkadvisor.com/2022/09/22/life-groups-calls-on-states-to-review-agent-exam-difficulty/

Excerpt:

The American Council of Life Insurers has joined with two rival producer groups, the National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors and Finseca, to send state lawmakers, insurance commissioners and other policymakers a new 10-page position paper, “A Workplan to Identify & Remove Unnecessary Barriers to Producer Licensure.”

The groups contend that better licensing rules would expand the supply of agents, brokers and other insurance producers, as well as increase producer diversity.

Author(s): Allison Bell

Publication Date: 22 Sept 2022

Publication Site: Think Advisor

Covid Spurs Biggest Rise in Life-Insurance Payouts in a Century

Mary Pat Campbell

Link:https://www.wsj.com/articles/covid-spurs-biggest-rise-in-life-insurance-payouts-in-a-century-11639045802

Excerpt:

The Covid-19 pandemic last year drove the biggest increase in death benefits paid by U.S. life insurers since the 1918 influenza epidemic, an industry trade group said.

Death-benefit payments rose 15.4% in 2020 to $90.43 billion, mostly due to the pandemic, according to the American Council of Life Insurers. In 1918, payments surged 41%.

The hit to the insurance industry was less than expected early in the pandemic because many of the victims were older people who typically have smaller policies. The industry paid out $78.36 billion in 2019, and payouts have typically increased modestly each year.

….

In the 1918 flu pandemic, the number of U.S. deaths reached about 675,000, with mortality high in people younger than 5 years old, 20 to 40 years old, and 65 years and older, according to the CDC’s website.

The ACLI’s data show two other years, both in the 1920s, when year-over-year increases topped 15%, when there also were influenza epidemics, said Andrew Melnyk, the ACLI’s vice president of research and chief economist.

Author(s): Leslie Scism

Publication Date: 9 Dec 2021

Publication Site: Wall Street Journal

ACLI Webinar Series: Navigating Credit Trends and Market Challenges

Mary Pat Campbell

Video:

ACLI learning link: https://learning.acli.com/product?p=acli-webinar-series-navigating-credit-trends-and-market-challenges

Description:

It seems that not a week goes by without an announcement of another merger/acquisition transaction in the life insurance industry. With an overlay of persistent capital market volatility and a sharply increased focus on ESG risk factors, life insurance executives will have their plates full of challenges for the balance of 2021. Whether large national carriers or smaller regional players, virtually every life company will experience changes in their operating environment. Our panelists will share their perspectives on how these trends will shape the insurance markets and discuss the implications for credit and risk management.

Author(s): Peter Giacone, KBRA; Celeste Guth, Erinn King, David Marcinek

Publication Date: 13 May 2021

Publication Site: ACLI on Vimeo

Group Wants Life Underwriters to Post COVID-19 Standards

Mary Pat Campbell

Link: https://www.thinkadvisor.com/2021/03/01/group-wants-life-underwriters-to-post-covid-19-standards/

Excerpt:

The Consumer Federation of America says life insurers should voluntarily disclose the changes they are making in life insurance underwriting procedures and standards as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Washington-based federation says life insurers ought to at least answer basic questions, such as whether they will require applicants to use COVID-19 vaccines, what kinds of tests and test results they’ll require and whether and how standards might vary by applicant age.

Author(s): Allison Bell

Publication Date: 1 March 2021

Publication Site: Think Advisor