The majority of insurance companies already maintain a rigorous corporate governance model to protect the financial interests of their policyholders and shareholders. So why does the Sarbanes-Oxley act have the industry aflutter? New research from TowerGroup, a Needham, Mass.-based research and consulting firm, finds insurers are realizing that the law can serve as a catalyst for long- term financial systems architecture strategy and process improvements."The globalization of insurance and the current complex regulatory environment necessitate a systematic, integrated approach to risk management," says Cindy Saccocia, senior analyst in the Insurance practice at TowerGroup and author of the report, titled "Sarbanes-Oxley and Insurance: Requirements, Hype, and Opportunity."

Atlanta-based Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Georgia has launched the Clear Claim Connection, an online product and service for its network providers. This product, created by McKesson Corp., enables BCBSGa to share with network providers the auditing rules and clinical rationale which exist in the claims billing and auditing code system used by BCBSGa.John Watts, president and chief executive officer of BCBSGa, says, "This important service will enable network physicians and their office staffs to review our payment methodology online. By providing this service, we hope to make our reimbursement policies more readily accessible and reduce misunderstandings among providers, members and BCBSGa."

Each year, more insurers appear to be increasing their budgets in implementing sophisticated fraud detection systems; however, the majority of these investments are centered around post-payment fraud detection rather than detecting fraud prior to claims being paid.

Employees of Armonk, N.Y.-based IBM Corp. who are members of the Alliance@IBM, CWA Local 1701, have a sharp message for management to deliver at IBM's annual meeting today. Alliance members are passing out leaflets to shareholders as they arrive and address the meeting on key shareholder proposals. Following the meeting, they are joining members of the Programmers Guild, Jobs with Justice and other union supporters in a rally opposing the offshoring of American jobs by U.S. high tech companies

Los Angeles-based Marshall & Swift / Boeckh (MS/B) will be acquired by MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates Ltd., Richmond, B.C., Canada.MDA is a global information company providing property-specific information to businesses and governments. Operating through two groups Information Products and Information Systems, MDA is active in data collection, information extraction, and information distribution.

Denver, CO--Valen Technologies, a provider of intelligent predictive analysis and decision enabling software, announced the availability of a premium modification module for its predictive underwriting software, Risk Manager. The new module develops a sophisticated, multivariate pure premium model that underwriters use on a daily basis to surcharge and discount policies more effectively.

Preferred Medical Claim Solutions (PMCS), Scottsdale, Ariz., and Genelco Software Solutions, a division of Greenville, S.C.-based Liberty Insurance Services Corporation (LIS), have formed a strategic partnership that will provide Genelco Group+ users access to the Preferred Data Interchange (PDI) offered through PMCS. Genelco Software Solutions provides administration software and services to life and health insurers."A number of Genelco Group+ users wanted the claim funding and repricing that PMCS provides," says Mike Molinar, vice-president of Genelco Software Solutions. "Knowing that this will save our clients money, we thought it very important to provide a seamless way for them to take advantage of the PMCS network."

San Diego, CA--WorldGroup has introduced InsureWorx First Report of Injury (FROI), the latest InsureWorx On Demand Solution (ODS). The new FROI capabilities offer exceptional efficiency and customer service to the First Report of Injury process, enabling efficient and timely intervention - critically important to controlling overall costs of workplace injury claims. The company launched the solution at RIMS Annual Conference & Exhibition.

SAN DIEGO, CA---Assurex Global, the world's largest privately held risk management, commercial insurance and employee benefits broker group, is launching new software to enhance communication and information-sharing among its independent broker partners and commercial clients around the world. The software was introduced here at the Risk and Insurance Management Society's annual conference.

Prudential Financial Inc., Newark, N.J., has launched a new online disability claim submission application for employees of group disability clients. The new functionality also lets employees handle many aspects of their claims using a highly secure and confidential online process."Continuing to provide our clients and their employees with the secure tools they need to effectively manage disability issues is of paramount importance to us," says Al Hemond, vice president of disability risk management for Prudential's group insurance business. "Online employee claim submission supports our strategy of providing claims management services that are responsive to the varying needs of claimants."

SunGard Sherwood Systems, an operating unit of SunGard today announced that Wawanesa Mutual Insurance Company, one of the largest property and casualty insurers in Canada, has licensed SunGard's FrontTier solution to replace its existing legacy policy, billing, workflow and claims systems.

S2, a new service offering from CBC National Inc., Saddle River, N.J., and ARI (Automotive Resources International), Mt. Laurel, N.J., was launched as part of a strategic partnership between the two subrogation recovery and salvage/remarketing industry players. According to the companies, the new venture was built on the premise that no company should let money slip through its fingers.Responding to the needs of the insurance industry, the rental car industry, and a variety of other self-insured and government entities, S2 provides clients with aggressive subrogation resale services that are designed to positively impact their bottom line.

SIMSBURY, Conn. -- The Hartford Financial Services Group, Inc. today announced that Internet-based self- service reporting is now available nationwide to its group life and disability insurance customers, providing them immediate online access to standard reports that help them monitor and manage their group benefits plans.

ATLANTA-- Digital Insurance Inc. announced it has signed agreements with five additional employee benefits brokers to enhance the level of day-to-day service and product sales for a portion of their small group benefits business.

IVANS Inc., a Greenwich, Conn.-based provider of networking services for the insurance and healthcare industries is offering a new wireless fidelity solution (Wi-Fi) for insurance carriers that can significantly speed their ability to remotely process claims and improve customer service. The new Wi-Fi service is offered through IVANS business partner, AT&T.As the demand for Wi-Fi technology increases, so does the need for low-cost flexible solutions. According to data provided by The Yankee Group, a communications and networking research and consulting firm based in Boston, 14% of U.S. companies plan to implement the technology within the next twelve months, and another 14% plan to follow suit in the next two years. A recent IVANS study of large and mid-sized insurance carriers indicates that only 27.9% are currently using Wi-Fi technology to allow remote access to their systems by employees, highlighting the growth potential for Wi-Fi technology.

Results International Systems (RIS) will provide an end-to-end, Web-enabled policy processing system Partners Mutual Insurance Co.'s personal and commercial lines of business. The RIS solution will deliver a policy processing system with integration to claims, billing, rating and form printing. RIS will provide the hardware, software, systems personnel, systems security, back-up and disaster recovery.

SUNNYVALE, Calif.-- Vitria, a leading provider of business process integration solutions, today announced that Premera Blue Cross, a Blue Cross Blue Shield Association independent licensee for Washington state and Alaska, has selected Vitria's Healthcare Solutions as the integration infrastructure to simplify, streamline and automate its transaction management processes.

AMSTERDAM and MILAN--Accenture has signed an agreement to acquire Nomos Sistema, a leading provider of life insurance administration and product management software systems in Italy. Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Toronto, Canada--DWL, a provider of Enterprise Business Services software, today announced that Empire Financial Group has launched phase two of groupweb - an initiative to achieve proven cost reduction with web-based self-servicing capabilities for group business. Following on the success of Empire's initial implementation of DWL InsuranceT for Group Life and Health, which provides a password protected site for electronic plan administration, phase two of the project now adds full update and enrollment capability in real-time, using version 3.0 of DWL Insurance for Group Life & Health.

TORONTO, April 6, 2004 - SOLCORP, a leading provider of software solutions to the life insurance and financial industries and a subsidiary of EDS, announced today that it is co-sponsoring a global insurance survey in conjunction with partner companies Whitehill Technologies and DSPA Software.