In the AAIS Pulse session Commissioner’s Corner: Catching Up with National & State Insurance Regulators, host Lori Dreaver Munn, Director of Compliance and Government Relations at AAIS spoke with multiple leading regulators for their insights on trending regulatory topics including Andrew Mais, Commissioner of the Connecticut Insurance Department and NAIC President-Elect. In this interview, Mais talked about his reaction to Mike Consedine’s departure from the NAIC, major initiatives for the NAIC in 2023, modernizing policy reviews in Connecticut, and more. 

Consedine’s Departure and its Effect on Future of NAIC 

Mais admitted that the news of Mike Consedine stepping down as CEO of the NAIC came as a bit of a shock, but he had wonderful things to say about his achievements and the future of the NAIC under its new CEO. “Under Mike's leadership, the NAIC has accomplished so much nationally for its members,” said Mais. “[This includes] the new State Connected strategic plan, which we've just adopted and will soon implement.” 

Commissioner Mais is optimistic for the NAIC’s future under current COO, Andy Beal, who has been appointed acting CEO following Consedine’s departure. “Andy Beal has a tremendous amount of experience, and we are glad that he has stepped forward,” said Mais. “He knows the NAIC; he knows the staff, and he knows the members. Andy will be great as the NAIC moves to the next step on its journey.” 

Major NAIC Initiatives for 2023 

As technology-driving innovations like artificial intelligence (AI) and machine learning are taking off, the NAIC is implementing major initiatives to keep up. One of them is the creation of the Innovation Cybersecurity and Technology (H) Committee. The H Committee is the first high-level committee the NAIC created in over two decades and was established to recognize the importance of innovation. “We hope to convey to everyone that while we understand there are concerns [and] there could be pitfalls, we also will remain vigilant because we know that innovation, and certainly technology-enabled innovation, provides consumers with great new chances to get relevant products as quickly and as affordably as possible,” Mais affirmed. “We want to make sure that consumers are not discriminated against [and] that consumers understand how decisions are being made."

The NAIC is also making progress with long-term care insurance. Mais admitted that there are still concerns, but with a multi-state actuarial review and other methodologies, the NAIC is attempting to ensure that consumers who have paid for a product over the past 20-30 years can maintain coverage and not be priced out of the market.

Connecticut’s Efforts to Modernize 

Policy forms continue to be increasingly complex, with the increased use of complex models. Unless regulators have the same tools as companies do, there is a risk of becoming roadblocks to progress. That is why in Connecticut, Commissioner Mais has implemented several changes. “We've hired our first data scientists,” he revealed. “With all the complex models that are available, now we need to be able to understand them.” This will help the companies that are filing as well as consumers. Company filings will go through in a timely manner and consumers can get products as quickly, efficiently, and affordably as possible. 

Mais has begun working with AAIS on the Kira system in another effort to modernize. Connecticut started using the AI system for property casualty filings. These filings are generally extremely long, and a basic algorithm does not always adjust to minor changes or pick up on minor deviations. “Kira is a machine learning system that has worked wonderfully,” Mais applauded. “It has not only sped up the task tremendously, [but it] certainly makes things easier for both regulators and for the companies that are providing form files.” 

Kira also helps with another one of his concerns, coverage gaps. "We know there are gaps in probably every single area [and] every sector of insurance,” stated Mais. “Technology innovations like Kira help us move closer to the day when we can fill most coverage gaps.” 

To view the entire interview with Commissioner Andrew Mais, click on the video above.