NAIC Accused of Singing for Insurance Industry's Supper with Grant Initiative

Article Friday, June 08, 2012 11:23 AM ET NAIC accused of singing for insurance industry's supper with Grant initiative By Sean P. Carr The NAIC's hiring of Christian singer-songwriter Amy Grant as spokeswoman for an outreach program aimed at baby boomers drew a mixed reaction, and some puzzlement, from longtime observers of the regulatory association. Grant, 51, is mostly known as a Christian pop and gospel recording artist. Her most recent album, 2010's "Somewhere Down the Road," included the single "Better than a Hallelujah." Grant's best-known songs include "Baby, Baby," and the duet, "The Next Time I Fall." Grant will be the face of the NAIC's Insure U consumer education campaign, NAIC President and Florida Insurance Commissioner Kevin McCarty announced. In a one-minute audio public service announcement, she says: "Making smart insurance decisions can be the difference between living in the moment and finding yourself in a state of worry and stress. To make sound choices, you need unbiased information. That's why I've partnered with the National Association of Insurance Commissioners to encourage you to plan ahead." "It sounded like a sales pitch for insurance," J. Robert Hunter, director of insurance for the Consumer Federation of America, told SNL. Hunter said he likes Grant's music, and her values, but "the NAIC's job isn't to sell insurance." Asked about the terms of Grant's hire, an NAIC representative pointed to an item in the association's current budget that targeted $177,800 for "securing a celebrity spokesperson and targeted outreach efforts." The recruiting of a celebrity is particularly questionable in an environment where public spending is under intense scrutiny, Eli Lehrer, president of the R Street Institute, told SNL. "This shows not only that they're wasting what is essentially taxpayer money, but that they have no idea about the aesthetics of the situation," Lehrer said. "Paying a well-known recording star who has nothing to do with insurance this much money is bringing this to a whole new level." As insurance commissioners continue to implement the Affordable Care Act, they have sometimes been asked to address issues of religious liberty, particularly surrounding a mandate for health insurers to provide contraception coverage. The decision to hire a celebrity with an overtly religious public identity is "politically tone deaf," Lehrer said. "Frankly, as a Jewish person myself, I'd be a little turned off by it," he said. In announcing Grant's role, McCarty said baby boomers often face tough decisions about their health insurance and life insurance needs while simultaneously caring for both children and parents. "We are thrilled to have Amy on board to reach the boomer population with important messages about specific insurance needs and challenges at this time in their life," he said in a statement. Several NAIC-designated consumer liaisons said they were not familiar with the decision but were not opposed to it. A stepped-up consumer outreach effort is welcome, Brendan Bridgeland, director of the Center for Insurance Research, told SNL. "It's an interesting tactic," he said. Former Washington, D.C., Insurance Commissioner Lawrence Mirel hailed the effort, saying using a celebrity spokesperson is a "tried and true" technique. It is also cost effective, once the expense is distributed across the 56 NAIC jurisdictions, he told SNL. "I'm prepared to be critical of the NAIC when criticism is merited. I don't see anything to criticize here. One of the important roles of state insurance regulators is to educate the public about insurance: how it works, what it's for, how to avoid scams, etc.," said Mirel, an attorney with Wiley Rein LLP. Source: SNL Financial | Page 1 of 1.

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