DOL Proposes Adding Variable Annuities to 401(k) Plan Default Option List A fiduciary would have to show that the benefits from reducing plan participant liquidity justified the impact.

The new DOL draft 401(k) plan alternative asset regulations could also let sponsors use variable annuities as the default investment options for the participants who don't say what they want to do with their assets.

www.thinkadvisor.com/2026/03/30/d...

#401k, #dol, #ebsa, #qdia, #acli, #eric, #iri

Corebridge and Equitable Agree to $22B All-Stock Merger The combined business would take the Equitable name and have $1.5 trillion in assets.

Corebridge went and acquired a really well-known forever name:

www.thinkadvisor.com/2026/03/26/c...

#corebridge, #equitable, $crbg, $eqh, #branding

Middle East crisis puts 'citizen soldier' benefits rules in spotlight When workers in the Reserve and Guard are on active duty, USERRA provides coverage continuation and plan reentry rights.

If the US military activates members of the Guard and Reserve due to events in the Middle East, benefits advisors will need to know about #USERRA, the law that governs activated workers:

www.benefitspro.com/2026/03/02/m...

(There is, sorry, a log-in wall, but signing up is free.)

#userra

President Signs $1.2T Spending Package, Promotes Drug Pricing Shift A separate Homeland Security funding bill fight could create new dealmaking opportunities.

President Donald Trump today signed HR. 7148, the CAA 2026 bill, and predicted that the impact of adopting a "most favored nation" negotiating strategy on drug prices will be a great issue for Republicans to run on this fall.

www.thinkadvisor.com/2026/02/03/p... #hr7148 #caa2026

Correction, sorry: #HR7148. Sorry about that.

Congress Sends Trump $1.2T Spending Package With SEC Funding, Medicare Provisions The Medicare provisions could eventually help clients use their favorite pharmacies and pay for Apple Watch devices.

Congress sent the president #HR4178 - aka CAA2026, aka $1.2 trillion anti-shutdown package, with #PBM mandates, #FitBit and #Galleri test #Medicare benefit starters, and probably some socks your dryer ate. www.thinkadvisor.com/2026/02/03/c...

The House is now considering the anti-shutdown bill, with major employer and Medicare #PBM provisions: live.house.gov #medicare #employer #pbm

Senate passes $1.2T 'minibus' spending package that includes employer PBM transparency provisions The House could vote on the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026 bill Monday.

Employer and Medicare PBM provisions roll through Senate aboard the Consolidated Appropriations Act, 2026 minibus:

www.benefitspro.com/2026/01/30/s...

#hr7148 #caa2026 #pbm

If sign for a *free* account, you can see the whole article.

PBM transparency mandates in spending bill hit Senate roadblock Parts of the federal government might shut down tomorrow if supporters can't close a 'minibus' passage deal.

Senate: debating the appropriations leg needed to avert a partial federal government shutdown tomorrow + lots of video of aides milling around the podium. "Minibus" package currently includes #PBM transparency bills.

www.benefitspro.com/2026/01/30/p... (free login wall) #pbm #hr7148

Medicare Advantage Managers Propose 0.09% Plan Pay Hike for 2027 A UnitedHealth executive said the proposal "simply doesn't reflect the reality of medical utilization and cost trends."

Medicare Advantage as we know it: Dead? Or just involved in a cliffhanger?

www.thinkadvisor.com/2026/01/27/m... #medicareadvantage

Transamerica to Put Mike Brodeur in Charge of 92,000-Agent Network The longtime executive will help lead the company's effort to make the middle market hot again.

Transamerica: Trying to shake off the winter (and geopolitical) blahs and shake up the middle-market market...

www.thinkadvisor.com/2026/01/12/t...

Transamerica, Will Fuller, Michael Brodeur, #middlemarket

Republicans and Democrats join to put ACA premium subsidy bill resolution on House floor The House has already started debate on the resolution, but the actual vote was postponed.

House, ACA premium subsidy boost cliff fight: 9 Republicans voted with all Dems to talk about voting on a cliff fix bill. Could it tug PBM, ICHRA, etc. bills along?

www.benefitspro.com/2026/01/07/r...

#acasubsidycliff #acasubsidyfight #ichra #pbm

An idea that might now be in play in Washington: Increasing the normal eligibility age for Medicare to 67.

thinkadvisor.com/2025/12/22/5...

Urban Institute, #medicare #urbaninstitute

Waldeck to Succeed Feeney as Head of Prudential's U.S. Businesses Andrew Sullivan, the CEO, said Waldeck has "a proven ability to drive results."

Prudential is changing.

www.thinkadvisor.com/2025/12/18/w...

@Prudential $pru

5 Things for Advisors to Know About the Health Insurance Subsidy Rumble The most important: Clients under 65 who pay for their own coverage face some uncertainty.

House Rules is streaming a big non-ACA-subsidy-health-bill meeting live now: www.thinkadvisor.com/2025/12/16/5...

View: Health system change legislation is like the Terminator. Even if it gets killed, incinerated and fed to fish: It will be back. #hr6703 #subsidycliff

In the tradition of great, long-running battles such as cats vs. dogs, cake vs. pie, Batman vs. Superman, and Star Trek vs. Stars Wars, LinkedIn brings you... commission-based annuities vs. fee-based annuities....

www.thinkadvisor.com/2025/12/12/t...

#annuities

Aegon's planned future: Less into tulips, more into hot dogs.

thinkadvisor.com/2025/12/11/t...

Transamerica, Aegon, #Netherlands, #UnitedStates

FINRA Warns Against Careless 'Mid-Segment' RILA Withdrawals Advisors who recommend taking cash out early must think about the current value, according to a new oversight report.

Thinking of just telling clients to cash their RILAs in for fun, just because?

FINRA: Go ahead. Make our day.

www.thinkadvisor.com/2025/12/09/f...

FINRA, #annuities, #rila, #regbi

Many of the insurers tried to hide from the shoppers -- but maybe they sold a lot of 2026 Medicare plans, anyway.

www.thinkadvisor.com/life-health/...

#medicare, #NABIP

Draft Trump 2027 Medicare Regs May Help Enrollees Who Lose Their Doctors The proposal could also expand a drug price negotiation program and overhaul marketing rules.

Tthe new draft Medicare regulations for 2027 might:

- Shorten how long Medicare plan agents have to save recordings of calls with consumers.

- Make it easier for Medicare plan agents to talk to consumers after seminars.

www.thinkadvisor.com/2025/11/26/d... #medicare

7 Things Clients Do — and Don't — Talk About With Their Advisors Lincoln Financial found that some retirement savers have shocking holes in their planning.

News of the Financial Services Survey Weird: Many 55+ people who have financial professionals say that their financial professionals did not even talk to them about their retirement savings and investment strategies.

www.thinkadvisor.com/2025/11/25/7...

#annuities, #lifeinsurance

Benefits Law Specialist Calls for All 401(k) Plans to Add Annuities Andrew Stumpff Morrison argues that trying to tap nest eggs without help from annuities is unwise.

Should the government require 401(k) plans accounts to come with in-plan annuities? A Michigan law professor says: Yeah. www.thinkadvisor.com/2025/11/24/b... #annuities #401k

Trump calls for direct cash health payments to consumers while signing anti-shutdown bill "I'm calling today for insurance companies not to be paid, but for the money to be paid directly to the people of our country, so that they can buy their own health care, which will be far better and ...

At the signing event for the anti-government-shutdown bill, Trump repeated that he wants to move away from the current ACA premium tax credit subsidies and replace them with cash payments sent straight to consumers.

www.benefitspro.com/2025/11/13/t...

#trump #caa2026 #aptc #cashforcoverage

5 Things About Life Insurers That Worry the Fed Risk trackers continue to wonder how quickly issuers can come up with cash in a crunch.

Possible sign of financial services stability: The Fed is worried about the same things about life and annuity issuers that it always worries about.

www.thinkadvisor.com/2025/11/12/5... #systemicrisk #federalreserve #annuities

7 Ways Caregivers Really Pay for Loved Ones' Care Northwestern Mutual looked inside consumers' actual LTC arrangements and found holes.

So, how do caregivers really pay for their share of the cost of care for loved ones?

Here are some of the ways....

www.thinkadvisor.com/2025/10/09/7...

Northwestern Mutual, Waterlily, Nationwide, OneAmerica Financial, Genworth, #ltc, #longtermcare, #maybe3in4didneedmore

“.. The strong growth usually seen due to shipments of holiday merchandise, “we are not seeing that,” said Dale Rogers ..

@cnbc.com #FreightRecession
www.cnbc.com/2025/10/07/s...

10 New Life & Annuity Issuer Efforts to Get Your Attention The federal government put itself in an eclipse. That may give insurers' product moves a chance to shine.

In a world where (for whatever reason) the government stops changing life and annuity issuers' rules every three minutes, maybe the focus will suddenly, weirdly shift to... the issuers...

www.thinkadvisor.com/2025/10/08/1...

#annuities, #lifeinsurance

The weirdest thing about the upcoming Medicare annual enrollment period:
Either it will, miraculously, be sort of normal, for no good reason.
Or an enrollment period will, finally, actually implode, and that will be pretty unusual.
www.thinkadvisor.com/2025/10/07/7... #medicare

Life Broker Backed by Robert Downey Jr. Moves Toward IPO Ethos Technologies' filings value its life commission stream at about $400 per policy sold.

Ethos Technologies: sort of the life insurance spawn of Stark Enterprises and Men in Black. Kind of sort of...

www.thinkadvisor.com/2025/10/01/l...

Ethos, Sequoia Capital, Downey Ventures, #ipo, #lifeinsurance

Medicare Advantage Plans Zero Out Agents A market veteran wonders whether the real problem is market upheaval or AI dreams.

Frank Adkisson of National Senior Insurance will be watching to see if insurers do this one weird thing that makes Medicare agents just shake their heads.

www.thinkadvisor.com/2025/09/29/m...

#medicare