What We Do Matters! Message from NAFA
September 22, 2015 by Chip Anderson
Those of you that have been involved with the industry for an extended period are, unfortunately, very familiar with routinely having to play defense. The industry, despite adherence to sweeping federal oversight and extensive state-by-state regulation, constantly faces renewed scrutiny. The latest of which – the Department of Labor’s fiduciary duty rule – will create an unworkable regulatory landscape that will adversely impact middle-class consumers and small businesses.
On July 21, 2015, we submitted a comment letter to the DOL during its 75-day open comment period. Our goal, as always, is to protect the livelihood of our members and the financial future of everyday Americans. We sincerely hope the DOL is open to constructive revisions to its proposals because we are deeply concerned that, as currently drafted, the proposal will result in duplicative and inconsistent regulatory oversight, thereby paralyzing many retirement professionals while limiting choice and access to products Americans need to secure for their retirement future.
We do not have a specific timeframe for the outcome of the DOL proposal; however, we are actively involved in battling this controversial rule. Along with our partners on Capitol Hill, CapCity Advocates, we have joined forces with SecureFamily.org and a strong group of industry associations including ACLI, AALU, GAMA, IRI, NAILBA and NAIFA to ramp up grassroots efforts. Please stay tuned to the NAFA website, NAFAWire and weekly NAFA email updates for the latest details on this evolving situation.
September is Life Insurance Awareness Month
While NAFA is exclusively dedicated to fixed annuities, their benefits to consumers and the role fixed annuities play in a secure retirement plan, we also work closely with our counterparts in other facets of the industry to increase awareness of related products and services. To make sure Americans are reminded of the need to include life insurance in their financial plans, the nonprofit LIFE Foundation coordinates Life Insurance Awareness Month. Each September, LIFE is joined in this educational initiative by more than 100 of the nation’s leading insurance companies and industry groups.
Throughout this issue of NAFA’s Annuity Outlook Magazine, you’ll find articles supporting this very important month – similar to June as the newly recognized National Annuity Awareness Month. As LIFE succinctly notes:
“Life insurance can do some pretty amazing things for people. It can buy loved ones time to grieve. It can pay off debts and loans, providing surviving family members with the chance to move on with a clean slate. It can keep families in their homes and pre-fund a child’s college education. It can keep a family business in the family. It can provide a stream of income for a family to live on for a period of time.”
Reading such a simple statement reminds me why we’re all in the industry in the first place – we care and what we do matters! So, whether you sell life insurance, annuities or a combination thereof, let’s remember a simple fact during this current period of upheaval – collectively, we must fight to protect the right of middle income Americans to have the tools they need to secure their future.
Charles R. “Chip” Anderson
Executive Director, NAFA
