There was a time when there were limited choices when it came to buying seniors health insurance. The times have changed and now there are many insurance companies that offer a number of plans for health insurance senior citizens. With seniors health insurance, the elderly not only get the power to get regular medical check-ups done, but also get the financial assistance when faced with a medical emergency. Therefore, compare the available options of health insurance to buy the best fit according to the requirement. While reviewing the various health insurance plans for senior citizens, it is imperative to choose the one that adequately covers the needs of the elderly and is affordable... Reported by WorldNews 14 hours ago.

NEW YORK, Aug. 22, 2017 : Private insurance claim lines with diagnoses of anaphylactic food reactions rose 377 percent from 2007 to 2016, according to data from FAIR Health, a national, independent, nonprofit organization dedicated to bringing transparency to healthcare costs and health insurance information. Reported by newKerala.com 8 hours ago.

LOS ANGELES--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Catasys, Inc. (NASDAQ:CATS), a provider of proprietary predictive analytics and integrated treatment solutions to health plans, announced today that it has expanded its OnTrak-A program to Connecticut with one of the nation’s leading health insurance companies. This represents the 19th state in which Catasys’ OnTrak program is available to members of major health plans, and the Company expects to see enrollment totals through this contract increase considerably sta Reported by Business Wire 7 hours ago.

Greater efficiency for insurance agents for open enrollment and client relationships.

Cedar Falls, IA (PRWEB) August 23, 2017

AgencyBloc, an agency management system/CRM and commissions processing software provider built specifically for life and health insurance agencies, is announcing their integration with RabbittApp, a web-based enrollment platform for ACA, limited medical and supplemental sales. The two companies prioritize delivering industry-specific software to create a value driven user experience and are excited to bring this software integration to the insurance industry.

The integration will, in short, create a pathway for policy enrollment information from RabbittApp to automatically import into AgencyBloc.

“This partnership adds an excellent complementary element to AgencyBloc’s CRM and agency management system - quoting and enrollment. With this integration agencies will be able to manage their business from beginning to end seamlessly within AgencyBloc,” said Adam Lewis, President of AgencyBloc.

Through this integration, AgencyBloc and RabbittApp aim to simplify quoting, benefits enrollment, policy management and commissions processing. With the integration, agencies will benefit from:· Sending quotes with plan comparisons to prospects from RabbittApp
· Cross-selling ACA and supplemental plans with RabbittApp’s fast, user-friendly software
· Newly enrolled clients and policy information from RabbittApp being automatically fed into their AgencyBloc account
· Identifying cross-selling opportunities through reports and analytics within AgencyBloc and RabbittApp
· Processing commissions on policies brought over from RabbittApp within AgencyBloc
· Great client support from AgencyBloc and RabbittApp representatives

“We are excited about our partnership with AgencyBloc. It will give our clients the ability to take their business and client relationships to a new level with additional tools and features. The integration will help us to provide more value to our clients,” said Andy Rieger, Founder and CEO of RabbittApp.

AgencyBloc and RabbittApp work together to streamline HR and insurance agency processes from plan quotes and enrollment to policy management. To learn more about the integration, click here.

About AgencyBloc: AgencyBloc helps life and health insurance agencies grow their business by organizing and automating their operations using a combination of an industry-specific CRM, commissions processing, and integrated marketing automation. For more information, contact AgencyBloc at 866-338-7075 or info(at)agencybloc(dot)com.

About RabbittApp: RabbittApp enables health insurance agencies to deliver additional value to their agents and customers with a premier enrollment platform that enables agents to quote and enroll customers quickly, while enhancing their ability to cross-sell to their customers. For more information, contact RabbittApp at 877-645-7986 or sales(at)rabbittapp(dot)com. Reported by PRWeb 7 hours ago.

Illinois consumers who buy health insurance on the Obamacare exchange will find out in a few days how much more that coverage might cost them next year — and if other states are any indication, it's not going to be pretty.

But the Illinois rate proposals, expected to be publicly released Tuesday,... Reported by ChicagoTribune 7 hours ago.

WASHINGTON (AP) " Leaders of the Senate health committee say they are scheduling two hearings early next month on how the nation's individual health insurance marketplaces can be stabilized.The two sessions are part of what will... Reported by New Zealand Herald 5 hours ago.

Two governors from each party want to stabilize health insurance markets, and they're crafting a plan to present to Congress. Gov. John Hickenlooper, a Democrat representing Colorado, and Gov. John Kasich, the Ohio Republican, want to get other state leaders to support a plan that addresses weaknesses in the Affordable Care Act, Kasich told Colorado Public Radio. The plan — still lacking in specifics — is the newest signal that lawmakers will consider a bipartisan effort to fix flaws in Obamacare… Reported by bizjournals 5 hours ago.

INDIANAPOLIS, Aug. 22, 2017 : Small employers, those with less than 100 employees, have a reputation for not offering health insurance benefits that are competitive with larger employers, but new survey data from United Benefit Advisors reveals they are keeping pace with the average employer and, in fact, doing a better job of containing costs. Reported by newKerala.com 4 hours ago.

WASHINGTON (AP) — The Senate health committee will hold two hearings early next month on how the nation's individual health insurance marketplaces can be stabilized, as party leaders grasp for a fresh path following the collapse of the Republican effort to repeal and replace much of former President Barack Obama's health care law. GOP and Democratic leaders are exploring whether they can craft a bipartisan but limited bill aimed at curbing rising premiums for people who buy their own insurance. In many markets, consumers are seeing steeply rising premiums and fewer insurers willing to sell policies. A Sept. 6 hearing will feature state insurance commissioners. The next day's witnesses will be governors. Reported by SeattlePI.com 2 days ago.

Connecticut Governor Daniel Malloy is among the country’s least popular governors after forcing through two tax hikes that sent individuals and corporations fleeing from the state. Luckily for the state and its people, Malloy apparently has no interest in sticking around to take the heat when it comes time for the next hike: *He has announced that he will not seek a third term. *

*Connecticut has gone without a budget for two months, and is facing devastating cutbacks in municipal services if one isn't passed soon. *But Malloy took time off this week from grappling with legislators to speak with a reporter from Reuters, he offers little insight into what lead to the state’s precarious fiscal situation. Instead, he blames it on overspending on prisons.



*"The state invested in the wrong things for a period of time. It allowed its higher educational institutions to suffer while it sought to placate communities with respect to other forms of local reimbursement,"* Malloy told Reuters during an interview in his office on Thursday.

 

*"We built too many prisons, which we're still paying off even while we're closing them," *he said. The Democrat took office in 2011 and is not seeking a third term.”



Prisons are only a small part of the state's problem. Choked by outmigration and a debt-service burden that’s the highest in the nation compared with revenues, Connecticut’s fiscal situation is deteriorating rapidly.* And after two months without a budget, Reuters reports that, unless lawmakers act soon, the government of one of the wealthiest states in the country will begin cutbacks in education spending and municipal aid as Malloy tries to close an expected $3.5 billion budget shortfall over the coming two years.*

Connecticut is one of a handful of US states on the verge of a Greece-style debt-crisis,* as it struggles to service some $23 billion in municipal debt,* *all while lawmakers keep one eye on the state’s unfunded pension liabilities, which have climbed to a terrifying $50 billion, thanks to the generous retirement packages enjoyed by Connecticut state employees.*

*Back in May, all three of the main rating agencies downgraded the credit rating on the state’s general-obligation bonds, sending the state’s credit risk soaring. *Meanwhile, municipal debt for the city of Hartford, Connecticut’s once-proud capital, has been downgraded to junk status. Health-insurance giant Aetna, which was founded in Hartford nearly 200 years ago, recently dealt the city a major blow when it announced plans to relocate its headquarters to New York City, though most of the company’s 6,000 employees will remain in the state.

About a year earlier, General Electric, which had been headquartered in Fairfield, CT for decades, announced it would re-locate to Boston, *where it would face a lower tax bill AND access to top-flight talent, who typically prefer to work and live in trendy urban hubs.*

After meeting with Millstein & Co, the same firm that tried to help Puerto Rico reorganize its massive debt burden, *State Comptroller Denise Nappier proposed a new tax-secured revenue bond program, which she says will lower borrowing costs and boost reserves. The bonds would be issued in lieu of general-obligation bonds, *according to Reuters.

But that's a long-term solution. Right now, the state still desperately needs a budget, or its municipalities will be faced with devastating cuts.



“…until lawmakers craft a budget, the state's fiscal uncertainty is causing havoc among municipalities. Some are considering whether to delay the start of school or dip into reserves.

 

 *And for Hartford, the longer the state goes without a budget, the closer the city comes  to a possible bankruptcy filing, said Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin, a 38-year-old former U.S.  Treasury official.*

 

*"The lack of a state budget... makes a liquidity challenge come that much faster,"* he said.”



By some measures, Connecticut has the worst debt problem in the country.



*“It has the most net tax-supported state debt per capita in the nation at $6,505, versus a median of $1,006, *according to Moody's Investors Service.

 

*It has the highest debt service costs as a portion of state revenues, as well as debt relative to gross domestic product, *Moody's said.”



During fiscal 2017, CT spent $2.85 billion servicing debt – the most in seven years.



“The $2.85 billion of principal and interest the state paid on its bonds in fiscal 2017 was the highest in six years, according to preliminary unaudited information from State Treasurer Denise Nappier's office that has not yet been published.”



A crisis at the state level promises to ripple across the state, destabilizing municipalities that have taken state aid for granted for too long.



“Further, the state's budget crunch is threatening its cities including the state capital of Hartford, which is considering bankruptcy due, in part, to its dependence on state aid.

 

*Connecticut has borrowed for decades to fund school construction, whereas nearly all other states typically borrow at the local level for those projects.*

 

*Lack of county governments means some other local costs are picked up by the state, including for all of its detention facilities.”*



As with many of its troubled peers, Connecticut’s financial struggles began with the crisis.



*“Connecticut has piled on debt to bolster its public pensions, selling $2.3 billion of bonds in April 2008.*

 

*And again in December 2009, the state sold $916 million *of economic recovery notes to close a budget deficit after depleting its rainy day fund during the Great Recession.”



*Beyond that, its decline has been hastened by a combination of forces. *A deteriorating local economy, coupled with a plunge in hedge fund profits, have strained the state’s already narrow tax base. Meanwhile,* high taxes have inspired wealthy hedge fund types to move to states that are more tax-friendly, like Florida.*

Despite its desperate financial situation, the state still leads the country in one important metric...

…college basketball championships.
  Reported by Zero Hedge 17 hours ago.

There's only so much employers can do to influence the health of their employees. Some businesses have tried to turn wellbeing into a competitive sport – along with league tables and prizes.

Others provide health insurance programmes that reward people for their tracked exercise.

However, interventionist programmes are risky. For every eager participant, you can bet there are two who are silently resentful of the prescribed regimen.

So, how can a business influence the wellbeing of its employees without alienating them?

*Wellbeing boosters*

Research shows that by exercising in the morning, we can boost our energy and brain power for the rest of the day.

Practising mindfulness has been shown to have similar effects. It helps us strategise and encourages our ability to focus on tasks.

Businesses that try to tap into our competitive side by setting up fitness tracking or weight-loss contests don’t realise that this competitiveness can, for some, have a negative effect on their wellbeing. Instead, encourage positive steps to fitness and wellbeing that suit each individual. That could be taking regular breaks at work, doing an exercise class during the working day, or even encouraging people to pamper themselves occasionally.

*Personalised support*

Rather than pressuring employees to conform to an ideal determined by the exec team or a health insurance programme, businesses get the most from their employees by focusing on supporting individuals to be fit and healthy in a personalised way.

For example, by providing employees with a personal wellness budget, employers can give control back to individuals. Offering a standard gym membership perk is fine, but if employees don’t use it, it’s not really a perk.

Find out what activities interest them. Maybe its yoga or Zumba; it could be a boxing class, personal training sessions, or even guided meditation classes.

*A culture of wellness*

Management needs to demonstrate a healthy attitude to work. Whether its enforcing email free evenings, or taking a guilt-free morning off for a doctor’s appointment – people need to see their peers and managers looking after themselves. That goes for physical as well as mental wellbeing.

Are people expected to always be at their desks? Do people panic if they can’t get an instant response from a colleague? Encourage people to get up and move around during the day.

It doesn’t matter what the official message is – if people don’t see their managers or peers practising what they preach, nothing will change.

*Discourage presenteeism*

We’re not machines. If someone is sick, they should feel able to work from home, or take the time off to recover.

Where possible, businesses should track productivity and quality of work, rather than the hours people spend in the office. It’s easy to look at someone staying late and think that they’re a trooper, but do they actually get more high-quality work done in those extra hours at their desk?

*Support mental health*

Businesses must encourage an environment that supports mental wellbeing and treats it as seriously as physical wellbeing.

Our mental health influences our physical health. Stress, depression and anxiety make us physically ill.

Encourage people to be aware of how they’re feeling every day and to think about how they can give their best in their current frame of mind.

Healthy employees are more productive. But one size doesn’t fit all. Encouraging employees to take steps to improve their overall wellbeing and live the healthiest lives they can will benefit not just the individual, but the business. Reported by City A.M. 11 hours ago.

Further to our article United Arab Emirates: Health Insurance Regulations and Technology in the Middle East, there has been a further update from the Dubai Health Authority Reported by Mondaq 11 hours ago.

The Senate health committee will hold two hearings early next month on how the nation's individual health insurance marketplaces can be stabilized, as party leaders grasp for a fresh path following the collapse of the Republican effort to repeal and replace much of former... Reported by Newsmax 9 hours ago.

One week after Goldman raised its odds for a government shutdown from 33% to 50%, days after Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin issued the loudest warning yet that the debt ceiling situation has to be resolved over the next month, and one day after Compass Point said that after Trump's Phoenix rally shutdown threat, the "odds of a government shutdown are now dramatically higher", this morning the market-implied odds of a government shutdown have spiked to the highest yet, with the Oct. 12 - Sept. 28 T-Bill spread spiking by another 4bps to 20bps...

... the highest since the Bill "kink" first emerged.

Confirming the market's increasingly gloomy sentiment - or at least the bond market's, stocks continue to trade on whatever is the latest CTA momentum whim - this morning Axios reports "top White House and GOP leadership officials tell us the chances of a market-rattling government shutdown are rising by the day — and were even before Trump threatened at his raucous Phoenix rally on Tuesday night to use a shutdown as leverage to get funding for a border wall." Quoting a "*top Republican source" who puts the chance as high as 75%, *Axios adds that "the peculiar part is that almost everyone I talk to on the Hill agrees that it is more likely than not."

Axio's Jonathan Swan also notes that it may all come down to Trump's mood, as "Trump is spoiling for a fight and the [conservative House] Freedom Caucus haven't had a fight for a while. That's a dangerous dynamic."

Meanwhile, away from the bond market, the Vix-term structure suggests that a government crisis will take place not in late September but the end of the year.

This makes sense as based on the Treasury's funding mechanisms, the showdown could come either in September or December, or both. Axios notes that according to "officials at both ends of Pennsylvania Avenue who are up to their necks in tax reform think passage probably doesn't happen until early next year" and adds that "a September shutdown could be better for tax reform than a Christmas shutdown, because it would allow conservatives and Trump to get it out of their system."

Meanwhile, Trump should not expect any help from Democrats who feel that Trump is "boxed in" largely due to the brewing war with Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell.



“Democrats have made clear we will not support funding for President Trump’s misguided, ineffective border wall,” Rep. Joseph Crowley (N.Y.), chairman of the House Democratic Caucus, warned Wednesday in an email to The Hill.

 

“If President Trump and Republicans insist on wasting taxpayers’ money, they will be to blame for any government shutdown.”

 

The sentiment is widely shared among Democrats –– Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y) and House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.) issued similar statements Wednesday –– and they’ll have plenty of leverage in the fight.



As a result:

· *Trump is at war with Senate Leader McConnell *and several other Republicans, complicating communications and compromising trust.
· *Congressional leadership doesn't want a shutdown *and can pass the fall bare necessities — continuing resolution / debt ceiling / Children's Health Insurance Program extension — using mostly Democratic votes.
· *But the Freedom Caucus will hammer Speaker Ryan *for doing so, and conservatives in the Senate will hammer Leader McConnell.

Adding to the uncertainty Axios also points out that following Bannon's departure, "Trump is surrounded more and more by conventional/mainstream folks, which could actually make him feel more compelled to buck them."

Finally, in a separate report from The Hill this moring, "with just 12 legislative days scheduled for September –– and the spending debate complicated by a Sept. 29 deadline to raise the debt ceiling –– the Republicans have little room for error. And Trump’s prime-time shutdown threat poses yet another hurdle, forcing GOP leaders to find a legislative sweet-spot that satisfies the president’s border-wall demand without alienating the Democrats, whose votes will be essential to keep the government running."

The question then becomes how long before the stock market finally "notices" what is going on with T-Bills and panicks, adding urgency to the process. As we reported earlier this week, according to Deutsche Bank, "*it is not unusual for equity markets to be comparatively sanguine until it is within the month of the deadline*", according to Deutsche Bank.



In 2011, the VIX oscillated somewhat in the months ahead (with modest rises at a roughly similar lead to the debt ceiling deadline as the current rise in vol), but the meaningful move higher did not come until about a week prior to the eventual resolution. In 2013 (when the debt ceiling deadline coincided with a government shutdown), the larger pop in equity vol occurred about three weeks before, peaking about a week prior to the resolution. It has not been uncommon to see some degree of equity drawdown about two months ahead of the debt ceiling deadline, with another more muted sell-off arising alongside with the aforementioned rise in volatility, though through this lens the evidence is perhaps somewhat less conclusive.



We are now within one month of the month deadline... Reported by Zero Hedge 8 hours ago.

BEIJING, Aug. 24, 2017 /PRNewswire/ -- China Life Insurance Company Limited (SSE: 601628, SEHK: 2628, NYSE: LFC) announces the unaudited consolidated results of the Company (China Life Insurance Company Limited and its subsidiaries) for the six months ended 30 June 2017 (the "Reporting Period") prepared under the International Financial Reporting Standards today.

*Highlights*

· As at the end of the Reporting Period, the Company's total assets reached RMB2,875,092 million, an increase of 6.6% from the end of 2016. The Company's embedded value was RMB697,520 million, an increase of 7.0% from the end of 2016.
· During the Reporting Period, the Company's total revenue was RMB396,165 million, an increase of 17.3% year-on-year; the Company's gross written premiums were RMB345,967 million, an increase of 18.3% year-on-year; the value of half year's sales for the six months ended 30 June 2017 was RMB36,895 million, an increase of 31.7% year-on-year. The Company's market share in the first half of 2017 was approximately 19.38%, maintaining the first place in the industry.
· As at the end of the Reporting Period, the Company's investment assets reached RMB2,595,480 million, an increase of 5.8% from the end of 2016. During the Reporting Period, the gross investment yield was 4.62%, the net investment yield was 4.71%, and the gross investment yield including net share of profit of associates and joint ventures was 4.69%. The comprehensive investment yield taking into account the current net fair value changes of available-for-sale securities recognized in other comprehensive income was 4.58%.
· During the Reporting Period, net profit attributable to equity holders of the Company was RMB12,242 million, an increase of 17.8% year-on-year.
· The Company will not declare an interim dividend of ordinary shares for the Reporting Period. 

*Business **Overview** of the First Half of 2017* 

In the first half of 2017, facing the complicated external environment and fierce market competition, the Company adhered to the value-oriented principle, adopted multiple measures, sped up business development and promoted transformation and upgrade by adhering to the operating guideline of "prioritizing value, strengthening sales force, optimizing business structure, achieving stable growth and safeguarding against risk". During the first half of the year, the Company generally operated in a sound and prudent manner, with its business maintaining a rapid growth and its sales force expanding with better quality. During the Reporting Period, the Company's gross written premiums were RMB345,967 million, an increase of 18.3% year-on-year. The Company's market share was approximately 19.38%, maintaining the first place in the industry. With the investment yield growing steadily, and the business quality and operation results improving further, the Company achieved stable progress with better fundamentals.

*Continuous optimization in premium structure.* In the first half of 2017, out of the premiums from new policies, first-year regular premiums amounted to RMB77,711 million, an increase of 10.8% year-on-year, and single premiums were RMB61,350 million, a decrease of 10.6% year-on-year. First-year regular premiums with ten years or longer payment duration reached RMB37,042 million, an increase of 9.0% year-on-year. Renewal premiums amounted to RMB180,495 million, an increase of 39.0% year-on-year. The first-year regular business and renewal business became major driving forces, which further reinforced the sustainable development of the Company.

*Great improvement in business value.* The value of half year's sales of the Company for the six months ended 30 June 2017 was RMB36,895 million, an increase of 31.7% year-on-year. As at 30 June 2017, the embedded value of the Company was RMB697,520 million, an increase of 7.0% from the end of 2016. During the Reporting Period, the number of in-force policies of the Company increased by 2.03% from the end of 2016. The Policy Persistency Rate (14 months and 26 months) reached 91.60% and 85.80%, respectively; and the Surrender Rate was 3.40%, an increase of 0.60 percentage point from the corresponding period of 2016.

*Consistent enhancement in investment management.* In the first half of 2017, interest income from investment portfolios achieved a stable growth, and the fair value gains/(losses) through profit or loss increased greatly. The Company's gross investment income was RMB56,663 million, an increase of 11.5% year-on-year. Due to the combined impact of an increase in gross investment income, the optimization of business structure and the update on the discount rate assumption for reserves of traditional insurance contracts, net profit attributable to equity holders of the Company during the Reporting Period was RMB12,242 million, an increase of 17.8% year-on-year.

During the Reporting Period, gross written premiums from the life insurance business of the Company amounted to RMB300,859 million, an increase of 18.5% year-on-year. In particular, first-year regular premiums were RMB72,976 million, an increase of 9.1% year-on-year, and the percentage of first-year regular premiums in first-year premiums was 54.33%. Single premiums were RMB61,338 million, a decrease of 10.6% year-on-year, and the percentage of single premiums in first-year premiums was 45.67%, a decrease of 4.96 percentage points year-on-year. Renewal premiums were RMB166,545 million, an increase of 40.6% year-on-year. The Company vigorously promoted the development of its health insurance business, with gross written premiums amounting to RMB37,324 million, an increase of 21.3% year-on-year. Gross written premiums from the accident insurance business amounted to RMB7,784 million, an increase of 0.1% year-on-year.

*Exclusive Individual Agent Channel.* The exclusive individual agent channel maintained a rapid growth with its business structure maintaining stable and its sales force expanding with quality improving. During the Reporting Period, gross written premiums from the exclusive individual agent channel amounted to RMB227,375 million, an increase of 28.0% year-on-year. In particular, first-year regular premiums from the exclusive individual agent channel increased by 10.2% year-on-year, first-year regular premiums with ten years or longer payment duration increased by 8.0% year-on-year, and the percentages of first-year regular premiums with five years or longer payment duration and first-year regular premiums with ten years or longer payment duration in first-year regular premiums were 82.05% and 53.05%, respectively. Renewal premiums from the exclusive individual agent channel increased by 36.6% year-on-year, which demonstrated the results of business structure adjustment for the exclusive individual agent channel in the recent years. With adherence to the development strategy of improving the quality and expanding the size of its sales force, the Company increased the number of new recruits, and comprehensively upgraded the system for cultivation of new agents and agent managers. While maintaining the steady growth of its sales force, the Company put more efforts in the improvement of their quality. As at the end of the Reporting Period, the number of exclusive individual agents reached 1.578 million, a 5.6% increase from the end of 2016, and the average productive agents on a quarterly basis in the exclusive individual agent channel increased by 39.4% from the end of 2016, which showed a positive trend for the quality of its sales force.

*Bancassurance Channel. *The bancassurance channel adhered to the two-wheel driven strategy, under which business was conducted through the channels of postal offices and banks as well as the Company's own sales channel. While further reducing the scale of single premium business, the Company strengthened the development of regular premium business to improve the value of the bancassurance channel. During the Reporting Period, single premiums from the bancassurance channel were RMB59,667 million, a decrease of 9.3% year-on-year. First-year regular premiums were RMB13,388 million, an increase of 13.0% year-on-year. First-year regular premiums with ten years or longer payment duration were RMB2,968 million, an increase of 17.9% year-on-year. The percentage of first-year regular premiums with five years or longer payment duration in first-year regular premiums was 52.38%. Renewal premiums were RMB19,419 million, an increase of 61.3% year-on-year. The bancassurance channel kept on expanding the electronic bank sales channels, such as online banking, self-service terminals and mobile banking, etc., to extend its service network, as a result of which the regular premium business operated through the channels of major banks and postal offices achieved a fast growth. As at the end of the Reporting Period, the number of sales representatives in the bancassurance channel reached 261,000, an increase of 11.6% from the end of 2016. The average active insurance planners on a monthly basis in the bancassurance channel increased by 26.5% year-on-year.

*Group Insurance Channel.* The group insurance channel continuously promoted the diversification of business development and effectively pushed forward the steady development of its various businesses. During the Reporting Period, gross written premiums from the group insurance channel amounted to RMB14,689 million, an increase of 6.1% year-on-year. Short-term insurance premiums from the group insurance channel amounted to RMB11,966 million, an increase of 15.7% year-on-year. As at the end of the Reporting Period, the number of direct sales representatives reached over 92,000, an increase of 8.1% from the end of 2016.

*Other** Business** Channels.* During the Reporting Period, gross written premiums from other channels were RMB11,026 million, an increase of 0.4% year-on-year. The Company actively and steadily developed its supplementary major medical insurance business and fundamental medical insurance business, maintaining its leading position in the market. The Company also actively participated in the pilot programs in relation to long-term care insurance, creating a good start for development in this aspect. In particular, the number of new projects for the supplementary major medical insurance business was 11, with the total number of projects accumulating to 261. The number of new projects for the fundamental medical insurance business was 19, and the number of new projects with successful bids for the long-term care insurance business was 3.

In the first half of 2017, the global economy continued to recover and the developed economies were inclined to tighten their monetary policies. The Chinese economy was moving in a positive direction while maintaining stability, with its key indicators performing better than the market expectation. In the context of preventing against risks and deleveraging in the financial industry, the Chinese economy maintained a prudent and moderate monetary policy. The rollout of new financial regulations posed a greater impact on the market expectation. Bond yield continued to increase significantly, A share market fluctuated within a certain range, and the structural differentiation became obvious. The Company seized the opportunity of interest rate hike and increased its allocation in bonds with long duration and non-standard debt-type products. The Company maintained its allocation in equity investment in the open market at a reasonable level and attached great importance to the value of H share allocation. The Company also actively caught up with good investment opportunities, such as infrastructure, supply-side reforms and convertible loans, etc., to broaden the sources of its incomes. As at the end of the Reporting Period, the Company's investment assets reached RMB2,595,480 million, an increase of 5.8% from the end of 2016. The balances of the Company's fixed income investment and equity investment increased along with the continuous expansion of its investment scale. In the first half of 2017, the interest income from investment portfolios grew steadily, the spread income decreased, and the fair value gains/(losses) through profit or loss increased. During the Reporting Period, the Company's gross investment income reached RMB56,663 million, an increase of RMB5,822 million from the corresponding period of 2016 and an increase of 11.5% year-on-year. The gross investment yield was 4.62%, an increase of 0.24 percentage point from the corresponding period of 2016. The net investment income was RMB57,732 million, an increase of RMB3,148 million from the corresponding period of 2016, and the net investment yield was 4.71%, remaining the same level as the corresponding period of 2016. The gross investment yield including net share of profit of associates and joint ventures was 4.69%, an increase of 0.27 percentage point from the corresponding period of 2016. The comprehensive investment yield taking into account the current net fair value changes of available-for-sale securities recognized in other comprehensive income was 4.58%, an increase of 3.05 percentage points from the corresponding period of 2016.

In the first half of 2017, by seizing the opportunity of interest rate hike, the Company increased its allocation in fixed income assets and increased moderately in equity investments. Among the major types of investments, the percentage of investment in bonds changed to 44.28% from 45.63% as at the end of 2016, the percentage of term deposits changed to 18.26% from 21.94% as at the end of 2016, the percentage of investment in stocks and funds (excluding money market funds) increased to 12.71% from 10.05% as at the end of 2016, and the percentage of investment in debt-type financial products increased to 9.39% from 5.38% as at the end of 2016.

*Outlook*

Looking forward, the Chinese economy is expected to be stable and heading into a positive direction, and the life insurance industry will still be embraced up with a lot of golden opportunities. The fifth meeting of the National Financial Work Conference has illuminated the directions for the development of the Company. China Life, as the mainstay of the insurance market and a major institutional investor of the capital market, will strictly honor its mission of serving the real economy, firmly adhere to the perpetual theme of preventing and dissolving risks, and pay great attention to the key areas during the development of the insurance industry, so as to facilitate the insurance industry to serve as the stable long-term risk management engine, make contributions to the improvement of the national social security system, and better serve the economic and social development.

"Leveraging the golden market opportunities and its own competitiveness offers an advantage for a new start." In the second half of the year, the Company will consolidate the stable fundamentals while making progress step by step so as to make the outstanding achievements. Firstly, the Company will forge ahead for rapid development. It will make more efforts in expanding the sales force while enhancing their quality to bolster their morale and improve their productivity, and push forward the implementation of the development strategy of various businesses in a practical manner. Secondly, the Company will maintain its focus on transformation. By returning to its due role of protecting against risks, the Company will continue to optimize its business structure and enrich its product line and actively develop the policy-sponsored insurance business. The Company will further improve its investment management system with the characteristics of China Life to serve the real economy and achieve reasonable and stable investment income. Thirdly, the Company will be more stringent to guard against risks. It will improve the mechanism on the internal control of risks and operate its businesses in strict compliance with laws so as to maintain the stable development of the Company and the industry. Fourthly, the Company will insist on promoting innovation. It will establish a new generation of integrated business processing system with full efforts, with its key structure, platform, functions and products being put online by the end of the year. It will speed up the research and development of artificial intelligence and its application, and build a high-tech China Life by taking advantage of the information technology to promote the business model transformation and the restructuring of organizational structure.

"Transformation brings about a new development while maintaining stable and sustainable business growth." All employees of China Life will commit to their initial intention to return to the due role of protecting against risks in the insurance industry, bear in mind the responsibilities of "serving customers and rewarding shareholders", and forge ahead with courage and persistent efforts, so as to achieve excellent results persistently.

*About China Life Insurance Company Limited*

China Life Insurance Company Limited is a life insurance company established in Beijing, China on 30 June 2003 according to the "Company Law of People's Republic of China" and the "Insurance Law of the People's Republic of China". The Company was successfully listed on the New York Stock Exchange, the Hong Kong Stock Exchange and the Shanghai Stock Exchange on 17 and 18 December 2003, and 9 January 2007, respectively. The Company's registered capital is RMB28,264,705,000.

The Company is a leading life insurance company in China and possesses an extensive distribution network comprising exclusive agents, direct sales representatives, and dedicated and non-dedicated agencies. The Company is one of the largest institutional investors in China, and one of the largest insurance asset management companies in China through its controlling shareholding in China Life Asset Management Company Limited. The Company also has controlling shareholding in China Life Pension Company Limited.

Our products and services include individual life insurance, group life insurance, and accident and health insurance. The Company is a leading provider of individual and group life insurance, annuity products and accident and health insurance in China. As at 30 June 2017, the Company had approximately 251 million long-term individual and group life insurance policies, annuity contracts, and long-term health insurance policies in force. We also provide both individual and group accident and short-term health insurance policies and services.

*Forward-looking statements*

Certain statements contained in this press release may be viewed as "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of Section 27A of the U.S. Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E of the U.S. Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended. Such forward-looking statements involve known and unknown risks, uncertainties and other factors, which may cause the actual performance, financial condition or results of operations of the Company to be materially different from any future performance, financial condition or results of operations implied by such forward-looking statements. Further information regarding these risks, uncertainties and other factors is included in the Company's Annual Report on Form 20-F for the fiscal year ended 31 December 2016 filed with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, or SEC, on 21 April 2017 and in the Company's other filings with the SEC. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements. All information provided in this press release is as of the date of this press release, unless otherwise stated, and we undertake no duty to update such information, except as required under applicable law. Unless otherwise indicated, the Chinese insurance market information set forth in this press release is based on public information released by the China Insurance Regulatory Commission.

View original content:http://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/china-life-insurance-company-limited-announces-2017-interim-results-h-shares-300509124.html Reported by PR Newswire Asia 8 hours ago.

ACCC discusses ways to save on costly items such as housing, food, transportation, healthcare, and clothing

Boston, MA (PRWEB) August 24, 2017

Creating a budget can help consumers see how much they are spending and areas they can cut back to save more. It is not always easy, but there are many different ways that consumers can cut back on unnecessary spending. In an effort to support our consumers, national nonprofit American Consumer Credit Counseling has created a list of tips to help consumers save.

“To pay off debt or save more now, consumers may be tempted to cut back on future necessities, such as their 401(k) contributions,” said Steve Trumble, President, and CEO of American Consumer Credit Counseling, based in Newton, MA. “However, it is important to avoid borrowing from retirement and instead look to other ways to save. Most companies with 401(k) plans offer matching funds, so failing to contribute means the consumer will miss out on free money.”

According to a report by Bankrate, almost 6 in 10 Americans do not have enough money in their savings to cover an unplanned expense of $500. About 41 percent say they have enough in their savings to cover an unexpected expense, which is up from 37 percent in 2016. To pay for surprise expenses of a significant sum, a little over 20 percent say they will put it on their credit card.

American Consumer Credit Counseling has created a list of how consumers can save by cutting back:

Housing and Utilities:· To get a lower rate, refinance the mortgage or switch from a 15-year to a 30-year loan
· To save money on taxes, challenge the property tax assessment
· Investigate whether bundled services (cable, phone, internet) are cheaper or if it is possible to do without some of these services. These days many people are replacing landlines with cell phones.
· Be more efficient by washing only full loads of laundry or dishes
· Lower energy bills by turning off lights and electronics when not in use and turning off heat or A/C when no one is home

Personal Insurance and Retirement:· Consider refinancing term life insurance. Rates have dropped in the past decade so that consumers may qualify for a lower premium.
· Suspend contributions to annuities and other accounts that don’t offer matching funds or tax breaks
· At a minimum, consumers should contribute the amount their company will match to their 401(k).

Food· Bring lunches and snacks to work
· Check the fridge for items before they go bad
· Give up unhealthy vices such as soda, candy, salty snacks, etc.
· Use the weekly grocery store circulars to find sale items and shop accordingly
· Prepare a meal plan for the week and stick to it when grocery shopping.

Transportation:· Consumers should raise the deductibles on their auto insurance policy.
· Investigate carpools and public transportation.
· Plan errands around the driving route to avoid multiple trips to save on gas.

Health Care:· Buy generic or store brand drugs, and speak with a physician about less expensive alternatives.
· Order prescriptions via mail or internet.
· Look for cost-less or low-cost clinics
· Utilize any reimbursement benefits that one’s health insurance may offer.

Clothing and Services:· Buy clothes out of season when stores discount them
· Consider buying used at thrift shops and second-hand stores. Also, consider clothing swaps with friends.
· Avoid dry-clean only clothing
· Cancel health club/gym memberships and find ways to workout at home or outside.
· Cancel unnecessary expenses like magazine subscriptions and utilize resources like the internet or library.

About American Consumer Credit Counseling
American Consumer Credit Counseling (ACCC) is a nonprofit credit counseling 501(c)(3) organization dedicated to empowering consumers to achieve financial management through credit counseling, debt management, bankruptcy counseling, housing counseling, student loan counseling and financial education concerning debt solutions. To help consumers reach their goal of debt relief, ACCC provides a range of free consumer personal finance resources on a variety of topics including budgeting, credit and debt management, student loan assistance, youth and money, homeownership, identity theft, senior living, and retirement. Consumers can use ACCC’s worksheets, videos, calculators, and blog articles to make the best possible decisions regarding their financial future. ACCC holds an A+ rating with the Better Business Bureau and is a member of the National Foundation for Credit Counseling® (NFCC®). For more information or to access free financial education resources, log on to ConsumerCredit.com or visit http://www.consumercredit.com/financial-education.aspx Reported by PRWeb 6 hours ago.

COLUMBUS, Ohio — The lone county currently at risk of going uncovered on the federal health law’s insurance exchanges has landed an insurer. CareSource will step up to provide health insurance coverage in Paulding County, Ohio, in 2018, The Associated Press has learned. The company and state Department of Insurance planned to announce the arrangement […] Reported by Seattle Times 5 hours ago.

COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The lone county currently at risk of going uncovered on the federal health law's insurance exchanges has landed an insurer. CareSource will step up to provide health insurance coverage in Paulding County, Ohio, in 2018, The Associated Press has learned. The company and state Department of Insurance planned to announce the arrangement Thursday. The most recent national analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation identified Paulding, in northwest Ohio just south of Toledo, as the final county still at risk of lacking a provider when 2018 signups begin Nov. 1. About 10 million people, including 11,000 Ohio residents, currently are served through HealthCare. Reported by SeattlePI.com 5 hours ago.

The last potentially empty county on the Affordable Care Act's insurance exchanges has landed on an insurer, the Ohio Department of Insurance said Thursday.

CareSource, an Ohio-based insurer with a background in Medicaid, will offer plans on the Obamacare individual insurance exchange in Paulding County, which was the last remaining county in danger of having no insurer in next year's marketplace.

The prospect of empty counties has long been a serious concern of health policy experts, since there was no back-up plan for those with coverage if counties went bare. Overall, 334 people had signed up for 2017 Obamacare plans in Paulding County.

"There is a lot of uncertainty facing consumers when it comes to health insurance and these announcements will provide important relief," Ohio Department of Insurance Director Jillian Froment said in a statement Thursday.

Cynthia Cox, an associate director at the Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonpartisan health policy think tank, said the concern was exacerbated in rural counties like Paulding because of the exit of Anthem and other Blue Cross Blue Shield providers.

"The majority of these counties were at risk of being bare at least in part because Anthem or the state’s Blue Cross Blue Shield plan left the market," Cox told Business Insider in an email. "These exits raised the question as to whether any company would have the ability or desire to come in and cover these counties. Not every insurer has a statewide provider network in place, and a lot of these counties are rural."

Many of the recent insurers that have stepped into bare counties in places like Nevada, Wisconsin, and Indiana over the past two months, Cox said, have been Medicaid-focused companies like Centene and CareSource that have experience serving populations that are more similar to exchange participants.

"At the end of the day, this is a business decision, and it appears Centene and several other companies see this market as profitable," Cox said. "First-quarter insurer financial data suggests that companies in the individual market are on a path to be profitable this year."

At different times earlier this year, states like Kansas, Tennessee, and Washington also were in danger of having bare counties, but eventually saw them filled.

Since President Donald Trump took office, the Department of Health and Human Services and Republican politicians consistently cited the number of bare counties as an example of the failure of Obamacare exchanges.

For Cox, however, this was an example of their deficiency — but also their resiliency.

"The exchange markets have not been without problems, but they aren’t collapsing," Cox said.

*SEE ALSO: The Trump administration won't deal a blow to Obamacare — for now*

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COLUMBUS, Ohio (AP) — The Latest on health exchange coverage in Paulding County, Ohio (all times local): 12:15 p.m. Ohio's insurance department confirms the lone county in the nation at risk of going without an insurer to offer care under the federal health law has landed a provider. The department announced Thursday that CareSource will provide health insurance coverage in Paulding County next year. Republican Ohio Gov. John Kasich (KAY'-sik) has helped spearhead bipartisan efforts aimed at stabilizing insurance markets. The most recent analysis by the Kaiser Family Foundation identified Paulding, in northwest Ohio just south of Toledo, as the final county at risk of lacking a provider when 2018 signups begin Nov. 1. Reported by SeattlePI.com 3 hours ago.