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Texas agent named ACSR of the year.

Research from One Call Medical finds medical costs, accountability and education are the biggest hurdles.

Experts say global response necessary for biggest firms.

Bill seeking to amend McCarran-Ferguson Act now focuses solely on health insurers.

One of the plan's proposals is to adopt real-time analysis of claims and payments data to identify waste, fraud and abuse in health programs.

Financial services firms have reckoned with the fact that social media is here to stay, but insurers would be wise to watch how their name is being used in social circles.

The Associated Press reported recently that the FBI is investigating a Pennsylvania school district accused of “secretly activating webcams inside students' homes.” The FBI will explore whether Lower Merion School District officials broke any federal wiretap or computer-intrusion laws by activating the webcams in laptops that the school owns and distributes to students.

Unitrin Inc. reached an agreement with Physicians Mutual to sell Reserve National Insurance Co., its health insurance subsidiary that specializes in accident and health insurance products and Medicare Supplement insurance. “We believe that Reserve National is a very good fit with Physicians Mutual,” says Don Southwell, Unitrin’s chairman, president and CEO. “While Reserve National has performed well since we purchased it in 1998, we do not have the scale in health insurance to compete effectively in the years ahead.”

Knowing that relationships with producers can make or break and insurer, Montgomery Insurance, a Liberty Mutual Agency Markets regional company, developed an online training and development resource for agency partners to grow their businesses. Agent Learning Center is designed to alleviate the time and financial constraints that agencies face in developing new producers and staff.

Daniel Riordan will assume the role of president of Zurich’s (www.zurichna.com) North America Commercial Specialties business unit, effective immediately. Riordan currently serves as head of Zurich's Surety, Credit and Political Risk group and will be in charge of both units until a replacement is named.

Dallas-based Lockton Dunning Benefits announced the appointment of Sheri Pixley to the newly created position of EVP and practice leader. Pixley's role was created to lead the growing team of associates directly servicing clients in the ongoing pursuit of superior client service, clear accountability and consistent innovation, the company says.

Philadelphia Insurance Cos. (PHLY) has expanded its environmental product offering with the addition of contractor environmental and professional coverage. The product is designed to protect insureds from environmental and professional losses in all aspects of their business.

FINEOS Corp., a global provider of enterprise software solutions for insurance and government social insurance, announced the appointment of Ward Graffam as chairman of the board of directors. Graffam has been on the FINEOS Board since 2008.

President Barack Obama laid out the first detailed legislative proposal for health care reforms to the United States’ $2.5 trillion medical care system this morning with an approach that largely follows the Senate’s version of legislation proposed in December.

With their successes in the United States, U.S. health insurers should review growth opportunities overseas, specifically Asia and Europe, according to analysts at Conning Research & Consulting.

After getting wind of unauthorized sale of health insurance products to approximately 2,500 Floridians, Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty has ordered seven companies and some of those companies’ officers to stop selling health insurance in the state.

The Group of North American Insurance Enterprises (GNAIE) executive director Douglas Barnet took to the podium at the 12th Global Conference of Actuaries to rally for the use of earned rate for discounting life insurance contracts.

We have daily discussions with insurers about how to balance the tasks involved with the maintenance of a legacy system environment with those required for strategic system renewal. It brings to my mind the analogy of “fixing a plane in mid-flight.” Most IT shops have neither the capacity nor the skill sets to do both with their in-house staff. These needs have created a large market for ITO, BPO, and system integration services. In observing this expanded sourcing model in action, it occurs to me that the whole organizational design of information areas is undergoing a change.

Hewlett-Packard ratcheted up the battle for a share of increasing cloud computing revenues this week by launching a new design service aimed at helping organizations accelerate the adoption of cloud-based infrastructures.

A couple months back, we reported on a study that showed younger people (under 30) were more likely to be receptive to electronic communications from carriers about new products and offers, which opens new possibilities for the way insurers can and should engage with this digital generation.