ACORD and PIA National Announce Program
to Provide Forms Access to Member
Insurance Agencies

By now you may have heard that ACORD will be requiring all agents and brokers to obtain an End User License to utilize ACORD forms starting January 1, 2020. PIA has partnered with ACORD to ensure that all qualifying PIA members under $50,000,000 in gross P&C revenue receive the license as part of their PIA membership.

ACORD End User License for PIA Members
www.https://pianet.com/acord
On January 1, 2020 ACORD will begin charging agents and brokers an End User License to access ACORD forms. PIA has negotiated an agreement with ACORD that will enable qualifying PIA members to access the End User License at no cost to the member, provided the PIA member accesses forms through an agency management system or another authorized distributor. Click here to determine the scenario that describes your agency and see FAQs.

• PIA member agencies with annual group gross P&C revenue under $50 million are eligible for a complimentary license to use ACORD Forms. The End User License will allow agents to utilize ACORD forms. In order to obtain these forms for free, agents and brokers will still need to access the forms from a distributor. In most cases, the “distributor” will be your existing agency management system. To access the PIA Agency Vendor-Supplied Forms License you will need to register with Acord here. If you have any questions you may contact ACORD member services at memberservices@acord.org.


• PIA member agencies under $1 million in annual group gross revenue and not using a form distributor (i.e. no agency management system), may also subscribe to the ACORD Advantage Plus Program at a discounted rate (a $20 PIA member discount) to access ACORD forms directly.

There are a couple of important details of which you should be aware:

• Agents and brokers will need to sign an End User License Agreement (EULA) from ACORD. While PIA has reviewed a draft of the agreement, it is not finalized. When it is finalized, PIA will provide an analysis. Agents and brokers will also need to be judicious in reviewing the agreement.


• PIA is working to verify your membership with ACORD but is also committed to ensuring your privacy. We are careful and respectful when handling your agency information and do not loosely supply this to third parties. In rare cases where this is required (e.g., your errors or omissions application, expressed participation in a member benefit, etc.), we handle your information with the highest level of care. As such, we will utilize the same care and practice when working to verify your membership.

As ACORD finalizes details, PIA will provide you information and assist you along the way. In the meantime, you can check for updates at www.pianet.com/acord.

Virtual Exhibit Hall

Flood Insurance and Terrorism Insurance Programs Extended, Healthcare "Cadillac Tax" to be Repealed as Part of Package

PIA applauds the U.S. House for passing H.R. 1865, part of the federal government funding package that includes three of PIA National's most important policy priorities: an extension of the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP) until September 30, 2020; the permanent repeal of the Cadillac Tax; and an extension of the terrorism risk insurance program (referred to as TRIA) through the end of 2027. The House vote was 297-120. PIA urges the Senate to pass this important bill as soon as possible and for the president to sign it into law.

[Quotes below can be attributed to Jon Gentile, Vice President of Government Relations with the National Association of Professional Insurance Agents:

Seven-Year TRIA Extension
"The funding package includes a seven-year reauthorization of the Terrorism Risk Insurance Act (TRIA) program without substantive changes. PIA has been actively advocating for the long-term reauthorization of the TRIA program throughout 2019, and we're pleased this has been accomplished more than a year before its scheduled expiration of December 31, 2020. TRIA is essential for ensuring terrorism does not risk destroying our economy should an attack occur."

Nine-Month NFIP Extension
"PIA has worked tirelessly to ensure the National Flood Insurance Program does not lapse as its expiration date of December 20 looms. To that end, PIA is happy our efforts paid off, and the program will be extended for more than nine months, to September 30, 2020, as part of the federal funding package. The NFIP is currently on its 14th short-term extension since its last long-term authorization expired in 2017. 

"The House Financial Services Committee unanimously passed a PIA-supported long-term reauthorization of the program with necessary reforms in June 2019. However, progress has stalled since. While it's disappointing that the program will again be extended on only a short-term basis, the nine-month extension will provide us with more time to work with Congress to ensure the ultimate passage of a robust long-term reauthorization. PIA strongly supports the House Financial Services Committee-passed legislation and will continue to advocate for its passage in the House and Senate."

Cadillac Tax Repeal
"PIA National notched a major victory in the funding package on a health care issue on which we've been lobbying for years: the repeal of the ‘Cadillac tax,' a 40 percent excise tax on certain employer health plans. Enacted as a part of the Affordable Care Act, the Cadillac Tax has never been implemented, due in large part to advocacy by PIA members who have led multiple successful efforts to delay it, most recently until 2022. The tax would apply to employer health plans and tax policies with limits that exceed the annual thresholds of $11,100 for individual coverage and $29,750 for family coverage. Over time, more and more employer-sponsored health plans will be affected, because the benefit thresholds will increase at a rate slower than that of inflation.

"The repeal of the Cadillac tax has long been a priority for PIA National,  and we championed the legislation that passed the House this summer to repeal the tax. Its inclusion in the funding package is a major victory for PIA National and for employer-sponsored health plans."

The Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) has started its procurement process for the renewal of a flood reinsurance program designed to protect against flood risks in the United States that are insured by the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP). FEMA returned to the traditional market for its NFIP reinsurance program for the fifth year running, having first obtained flood reinsurance coverage for the NFIP to the tune of $1 million in 2016.

In 2017 came a larger placement, with FEMA securing $1.024 billion of flood reinsurance for the NFIP, which was followed in 2018 by a bigger, restructured renewal, of $1.46 billion. In 2019, FEMA announced a slightly smaller NFIP reinsurance program of $1.32 billion. The smaller amount is related to FEMA's procurement of an additional $500 million of capital markets-backed reinsurance protection secured in the previous year by FEMA, through the issuance of FloodSmart Re Ltd., the world's first pure U.S. flood risk catastrophe bond.

Crowne Plaza Baton Rouge

March 4 and 5, 2020

We're excited to announce that the Louisiana Department of Insurance will be returning to the Crowne Plaza Baton Rouge Hotel to host its first ever combined event — LDI Health, Property & Casualty and Fraud Conference on March 4 and 5, 2020!

With a day and a half agenda filled with expert speakers and nearly two dozen breakout sessions, this will be a fantastic opportunity to network and learn more about the current landscape of our health care system and the future of the insurance industry — including the rising health care costs on a federal and national level. We will also explore emerging innovations in the property and casualty insurance industry and take an in-depth look at ongoing efforts to combat insurance fraud.

The registration fee is $125 for individuals and businesses; and $50 for government employees. The fee will cover a light morning snack, plated lunch and an afternoon snack on Wednesday, as well as breakfast on Thursday. Approximately nine hours of Life, Health & Accident and Property & Casualty continuing education credit hours will be offered for active, licensed insurance producers, as well as adjusters, who attend the conference. We also plan to obtain approval to offer continuing legal education credits this year. More information will be provided as soon as we finalize our agenda. The conference will begin at 8:30 a.m. and end at 4:30 p.m. on Wednesday; and again from 8:30 a.m. to 12:00 noon on Thursday.

A conference agenda, registration form and information for securing reservations at the Crowne Plaza Baton Rouge Hotel, will be emailed to you by early December.

Exhibitor spaces will be available for a fee of $500, which includes registration for two individuals to staff the booth and attend the full conference program, including breaks and lunch. Please contact Julie Freeman at julie.freeman@ldi.la.gov for exhibitor information.

We anticipate an attendance of approximately 600 individuals and hope that you can join us in making this a successful event. Please contact Crystal Stutes at (225) 342-4311 or Julie Freeman at (225) 219-4772 with any questions. You may also email the Department at healthcareconf@ldi.la.gov.