2023 Membership

2023 Adopted Charges

The mission of the Special (EX) Committee on Race and Insurance is to serve as the NAIC’s coordinating body on identifying issues related to: 1) race, diversity, and inclusion within the insurance sector; 2) race, diversity, and inclusion in access to the insurance sector and insurance products; and 3) practices within the insurance sector that potentially disadvantage people of color and/or historically underrepresented groups.

The Special (EX) Committee on Race and Insurance will:

1. Serve as the NAIC’s coordinating body on identifying issues related to: 1) race, diversity, and inclusion within the insurance sector; 2) race, diversity, and inclusion in access to the insurance sector and insurance products; and 3) practices within the insurance sector that potentially disadvantage people of color and/or historically underrepresented groups.
2. Coordinate with existing groups such as the Innovation, Cybersecurity, and Technology (H) Committee, Big Data and Artificial Intelligence (H) Working Group and the Casualty Actuarial and Statistical (C) Task Force and encourage those groups to continue their work on issues affecting people of color and/or historically underrepresented groups, particularly in predictive modeling, price algorithms, and artificial intelligence (AI).
3. Receive updates on recommendations on action steps state insurance regulators and companies can take to improve the level of diversity and inclusion in the industry.
4. In coordination with the Executive (EX) Committee, receive reports on NAIC diversity, equity, and inclusion (DE&I) efforts. Serve as the coordinating body for state requests for assistance from the NAIC related to DE&I efforts.
5. Receive reports from the Member Diversity Leaders Forum concerning best practices among state insurance departments on DE&I efforts.
6. Continue research and analysis of insurance, legal, and regulatory approaches to addressing unfair discrimination, disparate treatment, proxy discrimination, and disparate impact. Make recommendations for statutory or regulatory changes and additional steps, including:
   1. (Life Workstream) The impact of traditional life insurance underwriting on traditionally underserved populations, considering the relationship between mortality risk and disparate impact.
   2. (Property/Casualty Workstream) Developing analytical and regulatory tools to assist state insurance regulators in defining, identifying, and addressing unfair discrimination in property/casualty (P/C) insurance, including issues related to:
      1. Rating and underwriting variables, such as socioeconomic variables and criminal history, including:
         1. Identifying proxy variables for race.
         2. Correlation versus causation, including discussion of spurious correlation and rational explanation.
         3. Potential bias in underlying data.
         4. Proper use of third-party data.
      2. Disparate impact considerations.
7. (Life, Property/Casualty and Health Workstreams) Consider enhanced data reporting and record-keeping requirements across product lines to identify race and other sociodemographic factors of insureds, including consideration of legal and privacy concerns. Consider a data call to identify insurance producer resources available and products sold in specific ZIP codes to identify barriers to access.
8. Continue research and analysis related to insurance access and affordability issues, including:
   1. (Life Workstream) The marketing, distribution, and access to life insurance products in minority communities, including the role that financial literacy plays.
   2. (Life Workstream) Disparities in the number of cancellations/rescissions among minority policyholders.
   3. (Health Workstream) Measures to advance equity through lowering the cost of health care and promoting access to care and coverage, with a specific focus on measures to remedy impacts on people of color, low income and rural populations, and historically marginalized groups, such as the LGBTQ+ community, individuals with disabilities, and Alaska Native and other Native and Indigenous people.
   4. (Health Workstream) Examination of the use of network adequacy and provider directory measures (e.g., provider diversity, language, and cultural competence) to promote equitable access to culturally competent care.
   5. (Health Workstream) Conduct additional outreach to educate consumers and collect information on health and health care complaints related to discrimination and inequities in accessing care.
   6. (Property/Casualty Workstream) Whether steps need to be taken to mitigate the impact of residual markets, premium financing, and nonstandard markets on historically underrepresented groups.
   7. Make referrals for the development of consumer education and outreach materials, as appropriate.

NAIC Support Staff: Andrew J. Beal/Michael F. Consedine

Property/Casualty Workstream:

Co-Chairs:  Lori K. Wing-Heier (AK)
                     Barbara D. Richardson (AZ)
                     Kevin Gaffney (VT)

NAIC Staff Support: Aaron Brandenburg

Life Workstream:

Co-Chairs:   Karima M. Woods (DC)
                      John F. Finston (NY)
                      Judith L. French (OH)

NAIC Staff Support: Jennifer Cook

Health Workstream:

Co-Chairs:   Kathleen A. Birrane (MD)
                      Grace Arnold (MN)

NAIC Staff Support: Brian Webb / Jolie Matthews