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Life insurance sales up a whopping 11% in 1Q, LIMRA reports
insurance News Net
Total individual life insurance policy sales increased 11% in the first quarter, compared with first-quarter 2020. This is the highest growth in the number of policies sold in a quarter since 1983. New annualized premium also experienced significant growth, up 15% from the prior year, according to LIMRA’s First Quarter U.S. Individual Life Insurance Sales Survey.
Senate confirms Biden pick to lead Medicare, Medicaid office
The Hill
The Senate voted on Tuesday to confirm President Biden’s pick to head the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), Chiquita Brooks-LaSure, who will be the first Black woman to hold the key health policy position. In a 55-44 vote, the upper chamber approved Brooks-LaSure as the CMS administrator, where she will oversee the Biden administration’s goals of expanding the Affordable Care Act.
Report: Average benchmark premiums for ACA exchange plans decline again in 2021
Fierce Healthcare
Average benchmark premiums for plans on the Affordable Care Act's exchanges have fallen for the third straight year, according to a new analysis. Researchers at the Urban Institute, a left-leaning think tank, found that the average benchmark premium on the exchanges fell by 1.7% for 2021. That follows decreases of 1.2% in 2019 and 3.2% in 2020
The Hartford: How we've stayed connected with our small business customers during COVID-19
Insurance Business Magazine
There are approximately 30.7 million small businesses in the United States, according to the Small Business Administration (SBA), which accounts for 99.9% of all US businesses. They really are the backbone — in fact, pretty much all the bones — holding the U.S. economy together. Over the past year, the small business community has felt the brunt of the COVID-19 pandemic, with many struggling to survive through mandatory closures and significantly reduced sales and footfall.