Kansas Insurance Commissioner

2008 News Releases

Kansas Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger is honoring the insurance department’s employees as part of Public Service Recognition Week.

"I’m proud to be associated with such a dedicated group of state employees who work day in and out for Kansas citizens," Commissioner Praeger said Monday. "The Kansas Insurance Department (KID) is a wonderful place to work because of the atmosphere of care and assistance shown by our staff."

Kansas Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger said today the maximum sentence handed to convicted insurance agent Darrin Noah was just.

Noah, of Kansas City, Mo., was sentenced by a federal judge Monday to 6.5 years in a federal penitentiary after being convicted in November 2007 of one count of wire fraud. The sentence stemmed from a conviction in an insurance scam targeting senior citizens, many of whom lived in Kansas. Noah was also ordered to pay nearly $858,000 in restitution to 26 federal victims and undergo three years of supervised probation following his incarceration.

Kansas Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger said Monday's signing of a bill placing more consumer protections on "Stranger/Investor-Originated Life Insurance" policies, known as STOLIs, is an important step in keeping deceptive practices from harming Kansans.

The bill, known as Senate Substitute for House Bill 2110, was signed into law by Gov. Kathleen Sebelius Monday morning. It provides a revised definition of a STOLI policy, places restrictions on financing such a policy by strangers who would profit from it, and closes a trust loophole. It amends the state's Viatical Settlements Act of 2002. 

National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) President and Kansas Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger responded Monday, March 31, to the U.S. Treasury Department's Blueprint for Financial Regulatory Reform, which was issued the same day.

The Treasury proposals included creation of a federal insurance regulator, which would allow insurance companies to opt out of state regulation. The plan also calls for creating an Office of  National Insurance, headed by a federal commissioner, within the Treasury Department. 

Sandy Praeger, Kansas Commissioner of Insurance, believes it is fundamentally wrong to sell life insurance policies as you would wheat or pork belly commodities. “I urge Kansas consumers to be aware that potentially illegal arrangements allow an investor group of strangers to acquire an interest in the life – and profit from the death – of a policyholder.”

Kansas Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger, who is president of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), spoke to 15 national and regional media organizations March 10-11 about the presidential candidates’ health care reform ideas. The Commissioner was in New York both days, speaking by satellite on morning programs of regional television stations and discussing current topics with national news organizations. The trip was part of her duties as NAIC president.

As one of the nationwide leaders in advocating financial protections for military personnel, Kansas Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger announced today the Kansas Insurance Department will participate in a national insurance sales reporting system. Developed through the National Association of Insurance Commissioners, the Military Sales Online Reporting System provides a single source for insurers and federal officials to report disciplinary actions taken against those who have violated laws concerning solicitation of life insurance sales on any U.S. military installation.

The first waves of baby boomers turn 62 this year and begin claiming Social Security benefits. And according to new research from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC), of which the Kansas Insurance Department is a member, many baby boomers are confused about their post-retirement health insurance options, including their Medicare eligibility.

Kansas Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger will testify before a Kansas Senate committee Wednesday on the need for restrictions to life insurance purchases that could be sold as investments to strangers. The hearing on Senate Bill 624, which includes restrictions to Stranger/Investor-Originated Life Insurance (STOLI), will be at 9:30 a.m. in Room 136-N of the State Capitol. The testimony will be before members of the Senate Financial Institutions and Insurance Committee. 

A nationwide public service advertisement concerning long-term care insurance and featuring Sandy Praeger, Kansas Commissioner of Insurance, will begin airing soon. The PSA reminds consumers that unbiased assistance about long-term care choices is available from state insurance departments.  It was produced by the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). Commissioner Praeger is the 2008 NAIC president. (watch/listen to PSAs)

The Kansas Insurance Department excels in consumer protection. Our focus during each of the past five years has been in regulating insurance for the benefit of our consumers, advocating on their behalf when they need a helping hand, and educating the general public about insurance. Our ability to help Kansas consumers, however, is being challenged by proposed federal legislation that would let a federal agency handle insurance matters. (Op-ed piece) (More information)

Kansas Insurance Commissioner Sandy Praeger’s office helped thousands of Kansas consumers settle disputes with their insurance companies in 2007, recovering nearly $15.1 million in insurance claims for policyholders.

Consumer protections for those pondering life settlement contracts, as well as requirements for the new Kansas Partnership for Long-Term Care and workers compensation changes, top the proposals to be introduced for the Kansas Insurance Department (KID) during the upcoming session of the Kansas Legislature.

Homeowners in Kansas saw one of the lowest rate increases for insurance in the nation from 2004 to 2005, according to the latest Homeowners Insurance Report from the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC). The report also showed Kansas renters’ insurance premiums decreased almost four percent in the same year.