Data security

Kansas City, Mo. - Security, developing Web portals, and going paperless are among the top focus areas for IT staff at surplus lines insurance companies, according to a survey of NAPSLO members conducted in February by the association's communications & technology committee.

Needham, Mass. - The time is right for U.S. property and casualty claims insurers to aggressively exploit the business benefits of an enterprise mobility strategy, according to new research from research and advisory services firm TowerGroup. TowerGroup's report, "Mobile Solutions for US Property & Casualty Claims: Life in the Fast Lane," maintains that while using mobile solutions for settling claims is not new to the U.S. insurance industry, adoption for claims processing has been haphazard at best. Insurance carriers have been slowly bringing on mobile technology solutions to assist field workers with claims operations, yet the process has lacked focus and forward momentum. Given the strides made by mobile technology vendors in functionality, bandwidth and devices, mobility solutions for the insurance industry are increasingly reliable - and can yield significant value if developed within a coordinated strategic initiative, says the report. "Customers are increasingly expecting real-time, any-time service from their insurance carriers," said Karen Pauli, senior analyst in the TowerGroup insurance research practice in Needham, Mass., and author of the research. "While many insurers have various mobility irons in the fire, catastrophes like Hurricane Katrina quickly exposed the limits of the haphazard solutions that are in place. It's time for carriers to step back and create an enterprise strategy for mobility that encompasses all aspects of the claims process." Highlights of the research include: * Mobile initiatives will yield significant value for carriers when the implementation directly impacts the most critical business issues facing carriers today, including: disaster response; business continuity; and meeting regulatory and compliance mandates. The report also highlights the key actions carriers must take in order to create an effective mobile strategy. * Carriers can improve day-to-day claims operations, gaining competitive advantage and saving costs, by using predictive analytics to direct activities in a mobile environment. * Before carriers jump into an enterprise mobility plan, they must carefully review the needs and workflow of their claims personnel. "Today, few carriers leverage the breadth of available mobile technologies that could contribute to claims process efficiency," continued Pauli. "Instead, it's more common to see stand-alone applications that have little to no integration with other claims applications or services. Stand-alones don't scale well, usually lack extensibility and cost too much. Carriers must develop a more holistic approach to claims mobility, one that arms the adjuster with the key devices and applications necessary to get the job done in the most efficient and effective way possible." Source: TowerGroup

Fayetteville, Ark. - Blue Cross Blue Shield will partner with the University of Arkansas and Wal-Mart Stores Inc. to create a research center that will focus on using information technology to improve the health care delivery system, the companies report. The center's creation was announced today during a health information technology meeting -- hosted by Wal-Mart -- of business, IT and health care leaders held in Rogers, Ark. The Center for Innovation in Health Care Logistics will conduct research designed to identify and address gaps and obstacles in the application and delivery of health information technology. The center will also serve to highlight and replicate proven applications that are working to benefit patients and providers. The goal of the center's work is to put the right materials in the hands of doctors and nurses where and when they need them; it also aims to eliminate the threat of medical errors arising from wasteful and unreliable practices in health care supply networks. The Center's initial work will address information technology-based innovations for bringing visibility and tracking to every level of health care procurement and distribution processes. Experience shows that such transparency leads to significant cost savings by eliminating duplication and confusion, enhancing collaboration among participating organizations and avoiding mistakes that can lead to dangerous errors. "Blue Cross Blue Shield is proud to join Wal-Mart and the University of Arkansas in this worthy venture," said Bob Shoptaw, CEO, Blue Cross Blue Shield Arkansas, Fayetteville. "We look forward to contributing to the advancement of health care technology through the creation of this research center." In making the announcement, Wal-Mart Vice Chairman John Menzer said the center's work will help fill a large information gap in the health care system. "The best example of this need was Hurricane Katrina. Medical records, property records, court records were lost. Entire family histories -- medical, cultural and otherwise -- were gone in an instant, and the entire region is still recovering from this massive loss of information," Menzer said. "The University of Arkansas has a strong track record of success with industry-university research collaborations in the ever-changing realms of information technology and logistics," said University Chancellor John White from the University's Fayetteville campus. "A fundamental purpose of any flagship university is to stimulate economic success and enhance quality of life. We are well positioned to leverage our logistics center experience to ensure success in identifying real solutions for transforming health care processes, which holds benefits for the State of Arkansas and the entire nation." Professor Ron Rardin will be the center's executive director. Before joining the University of Arkansas, Dr. Rardin led the National Science Foundation's efforts to foster research in health care delivery and later played a key leadership role in Purdue University's Regenstrief Center for Health Care Engineering. Wal-Mart, Bentonville, Ark., will pledge $1 million over five years to fund the center. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Arkansas, Alabama and Illinois have joined Wal-Mart as partners. The Center will also raise money from other private sector companies, government agencies and foundations to help conduct its research and demonstration projects. Source: PRNewswire

It may not have started with the vehement criticism logged by Sen. Trent Lott, R-Miss., and Rep. Gene Taylor, D-Miss., against Bloomington, Ill.-based State Farm over hurricane damages to their respective homes, but the negative press that's ensued in Katrina's aftermath is still haunting the insurance industry.Shortly after Lott's brother-in-law, high-profile plaintiff attorney Richard "Dickie" Scruggs, filed a federal lawsuit, however, a flurry of additional actions, some of which are being played out by state and federal regulators, thrust the P&C insurance industry into defense mode.

Insurance industry experts will argue for a long time about exactly how much the Sarbanes-Oxley Act (SOX) has cost the insurance industry. They probably can agree, however, that those costs are significant.Carriers incur the costs making sure they comply with the act, which aims to make corporate executives responsible for the accuracy of their financial statements and for the internal controls that minimize errors and reduce fraud.

The insurance industry can't agree on a definition of the phrase "enterprise content management." Whatever it means, though, there's a consensus that it's improving.Many think of it as combining absolutely every kind of documented information the company owns and putting it into a paperless electronic central repository that imposes business rules, manages distribution and affords virtually unlimited access. That master file would house everything from this morning's jpegs to digitized versions of yellowing old paper-and-ink policies.

SITE SELLS POLICIES ON GROWNUP TOYSMarkel American Insurance Co., Waukesha, Wis., launched a Web site that provides a single access point to customers seeking to insure motorcycles, boats, personal watercraft and ATV.

AGENTS AND BROKERS ADOPT NEW RPOST E-MAIL SERVICELos Angeles-based RPost U.S. Inc. says independent insurance agencies and brokerages are adopting RPost as a service platform for outbound e-mail. Confronted with errors and omissions (E&O) liability exposures, agents and brokers need technology that enables them to optimize electronic communications while minimizing risk. By shoring up the security gap, RPost Registered E-Mail messages offer speed, security, accountability and personal liability protection in a cost-effective solution that can be used for an average cost of 59 cents per message. The company's services provide the e-mail sender with legally valid evidence of what e-mail content and attachments were sent and received, by whom and when.

Not so long ago, discussions of IT security tended to focus on the need to install firewalls; to tunnel via private networks; to employ encryption keys and digital certificates; to surround servers with multiple layers of access; and to install firewalls, sandboxes and "demilitarized zones" to snag hackers.Those tools and methods remain critical, but many in the IT community are recognizing the importance of addressing physical as well as digital vulnerabilities.

MASSMUTUAL UPGRADES PRODUCT MACHINE SOFTWAREThe disability income insurance area of Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. (MassMutual), Springfield, Mass., upgraded to version 3.1 of Product Machine, a set of tools designed to enable users to build, design and publish products.

Hartford, Conn. - The surety business has recovered from a slump that began with the 2001 recession, according to a new study by Conning Research and Consulting Inc. "The combined ratio climbed more than 40 points and stayed there for the next three years," says Mark Jablonowski, an analyst at Conning, which has headquarters in Hartford. "While the recession and tightening credit resulted in skyrocketing losses, the property-casualty underwriting cycle also contributed to the problem." Those views are examined in a study called "The Surety Market: Taking Care of Business." It's Conning's first analysis of the surety segment, a business the company says has iinfluence well beyond its size because of its importance to construction and regulatory compliance. According to the study, a huge increase in losses during the 2001 to 2003 period wasn't just from claims reported but also from claims that developed badly and a falloff in recoveries and other claims mitigation, says Stephan Christiansen, Conning director of research. The situation turned round in 2004 and 2005, Christiansen observes, adding that 2006 showed continued improvement and the future looks good, too. Capacity is returning to the market but with a renewed appreciation for underwriting discipline, says Christiansen. "That new-found discipline, along with attention to automation and technology [that is]driving cost control," he says, "lead us to a positive forecast for the surety line over the next few years, with premium growing at least as fast as GDP." Source: Conning Research and Consulting Inc.

Rochester, N.Y. – Many Americans are satisfied with how their personal health information is used, but a substantial number express reservations about the confidentiality and security of their health data, a new survey shows.

Washington, D.C. – America needs a public-private partnership to protect families from a devastating, massive hurricane or earthquake, the head of a coalition that includes insurers said in testimony this week before Congress. Such catastrophes have dulled the industry’s appetite for insuring against such events, said another witness, a representative of an agents’ and brokers’ association.

Washington - The National Association of Professional Insurance Agents (PIA) has asked its members to challenge the U.S. Chamber of Commerce’s recent endorsement of optional federal charters for insurers.

Phoenix, Ariz. - Insurance industry groups have banded together to create eight data initiatives and a central data repository to combat fraud, according to the keynote speaker at an industrywide meeting here of property/casualty claims and special investigations executives.

BELLEVUE, Wash. - Symetra Financial has appointed Tommie Brooks as vice president and chief actuary. He will assume leadership of the Actuarial Division from Margaret Meister, who is relinquishing the post but continues to serve as executive vice president and chief financial officer.

London - Senior executives and risk professionals consider data loss the most significant threat and key issue to address in operational risk management planning, according to a global risk briefing report conducted by the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU) and sponsored by London-based ACE European Group Ltd. (ACE).More than 40% of the 181 respondents said their organization focuses more on loss of data than other issues—including systems failure, human error and even natural disasters.

New York and Cupertino, Calif. - Last week brought yet another security scare to a health insurer. Empire Blue Cross Blue Shield, a New York-based subsidiary of WellPoint Inc., reported that Magellan Behavioral Health Services located a CD sent via UPS by Health Data Management Solutions (HDMS), a third party vendor to Magellan, an Empire benefit program administrator, that included some members' personal health information. The CD was lost in transit but was located. The insurer reports that although there was no indication that the CD had been stolen, last week Empire sent a letter to inform affected groups and members who may have been impacted.

New York - Insurers are taking enterprise risk management (ERM) seriously, but many companies have begun ERM programs without taking the necessary step of getting management consensus on risk appetite.

An insurance trade group has joined a chorus of New York officials in asking Congress to renew the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act, which is set to expire at the end of this year.