Health Insurance Underwriter

by Carolynne Muldoon Vice Chair, NAHU’s Membership Committee Boulder, CO cmuldoon@cobenefits.net

Escape The Rat Race – Forever!

I saw that on a sign I read at the side of the road on my way home one day. It got me thinking about what it would mean to “escape the rat race.” My life would no longer be filled with the laundry list of obligations, commitments and responsibilities that make up the fabric of my insurance work life. Well, if I escaped the rat race, then I would probably leave my membership in NAHU behind. Now there is a thought; maybe I should consider that…

NAHU recently held a Webinar about the new COBRA Compliance Regulations. In one hour, Tom Jacobs led 500+ attendees through the new regulation, signed into law by President Obama, that detailed an employers’ responsibilities on notifying “ITQB’s”

COBRA is a tough law to administer and now employers have the additional responsibility of sending out notifications to employees who were terminated after September 1, 2008. I think I need another webinar to go over the information again. Or maybe not, because I’m escaping the rat race, right?

If I’m escaping, I probably won’t need to renew the E&O coverage that I receive a discount for as a member of NAHU. Before I became a member of NAHU, I had a policy through a no-name carrier. I was satisfied because I had “coverage.” Besides, I was an ethical insurance agent. E&O coverage was protection if I really did something bad; I didn’t intend to do anything bad. Then I learned that it wasn’t me that I had to worry about because that no-name carrier went out of business, leaving me uninsured in its wake. Then again, I’m escaping so I only have to worry about myself, right?

As long as I’m escaping and moving to the Village of Denial, I really don’t have to participate in Operation Shout, attend Capitol Conference or contribute to HUPAC. This whole legislative advocacy is overrated. Why do our elected officials need to hear from NAHU members? They have all the facts. We can leave all of the decisions about the funding of health care in their capable hands, right?

Well, it seems as though I’ve successfully managed to lay the foundation to escape the insurance rat race. All I have to do is terminate my membership in NAHU and I can live a blissful life where education, protection and activism no longer have a grip on my life. Last I heard, the Village has room for new inhabitants. When you move in, your mortgage is paid up and you get a converter box for your television. Are you moving in or can we count on you to stay in the race? ^HIU

NAHU Education Foundation ................ 18 What We Believe .................................. 20 Meetings .............................................. ²⁰

Membership Application ...................... 21 NAHU Board ........................................ ²³NAHU Staff .......................................... 24 Convention Preview.............................. 25