OECD, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, in June 2018 issued a new report, A Broken Social Elevator? How to Promote Social Mobility, that provides new facts on social mobility in the context of increased inequalities of income and opportunities in OECD and selected emerging economies. It looks at the issue across and within generations, in income, education, health and occupation, and at how these are linked to

AXA in June 2018 announced it had sold its UK whole-of-market intermediary, The Health Insurance Group (THIG), to U.S. private equity firms Highbridge Principal Strategies and Madison Dearborn Partners. Acquired by AXA in 2008, The Health Insurance Group provides individual and corporate health and well-being products. Highbridge Principal Strategies and Madison Dearborn Partners already own several UK broking brands, including The Ardonagh Group. A “whole of market intermediary” is

For many years, the long-term success rates for those who attempt to lose excess body weight have hovered around 5-10 percent. In what other disease condition would we accept these numbers and continue on with the same approach? How does this situation sustain itself? 

Imagine that you are running a company, but you cannot get to your goal because all of your good workers keep quitting. For 30 years, your response to this problem has been to criticize the workers and say they are stupid and weak for quitting. As a result, you never reach your goal. You don’t change your formula or alter your plan, just keep blaming and shaming the workers for quitting.

Pretty much everyone knows that taking exercise helps people stay in good health. It staves off chronic ailments like type 2 diabetes and heart disease and – maybe – helps us live longer.

Mixing work and pleasure in one trip abroad can raise serious issues. Five experts from the Asia-Pacific in April 2018 debated how to stay on the safe side.

The Worldwide Broker Network (WBN) held its 58th Global Conference April 11th through the 13th, 2018, in San Antonio, Texas. Over 330 WBN members, associate members, sponsors, and some clients attended, with EPIC serving as the member host. The 58th Global Conference had record attendance from the Employee Benefits field, with 65 Employee Benefits focused attendees coming to San Antonio. Sessions were regularly packed, and an enthusiastic audience gave a special energy to this rapidly growing part of WBN.

In terms of land mass Brazil is the largest country in Latin America and the 5th largest in the world behind Russia, Canada, China, and the USA. Despite its vast territory, Brazil’s population is concentrated in the major cities of each state, mostly on the Southern coast. Being the only Portuguese- speaking country in the region, Brazil is also different in many aspects including cultural, and economic challenges, and the way of doing business in the marketplace. These are the reasons why operating in Brazil brings inherent and unique challenges to the HR team.

Obesity was designated a disease in 2013 by the American Heart Association and American Medical Association. Obesity, defined as a body mass index of 30 or higher, had long been identified as a health condition, but its designation as a disease underscored its role as a risk factor for leading causes of death, such as heart disease, Type 2 diabetes, stroke and many cancers.

Bleisure Travel and Corporate Liability Issues – A Debate Moving Around Has Big Health Benefits Sébastien Chastin, Emmanuel Stamatakis, Mark Hamer, Philippa Dall Three Things That Should Be Part of Any Weight Loss Efforts David Prologo New Medical Advances in Fighting Obesity David Prologo Why GPs May Not Be Able to Help You Lose Weight Jennifer Kraschnewski Benefits in Brazil – WBN Series Ana Carolina Conduta Losco, Priscila Maria

The smooth transfer of personal data between the European Union and the UK is of critical importance for many British and Continental businesses and may be jeopardized by the Brexit process. The 1995 EU Directive on Privacy establishes EU citizens’ right to privacy, including the protection of their personal data and the “right to be forgotten” from search engines. Countries that conform to these rules receive “adequacy agreements” that

Castel Underwriting Agencies, a managing general agent (MGA) formation platform, has opened its first branch office in Amsterdam, Netherlands to support plans to expand its operations in Europe as the UK leaves the EU. Castel’s European office will offer a platform to develop and launch specialty underwriting cells, as well as support individual underwriters with books of niche business across Europe, the company said. Castel Transact, a division of

CVS Health and Aetna in June 2018 announced their post-merger leadership team. Aetna President Karen Lynch will stay on as executive vice president of CVS and president of the Aetna business unit. Richard di Benedetto will continue in his current role as president of Aetna International. Shawn Guertin, Aetna’s CFO and chief enterprise risk officer, will become executive vice president and CFO of CVS. Fran Soistman, executive vice president

Swiss Life Global Solutions (SLGS) and Swiss Life Luxembourg in June 2018 announced three appointments in their teams. Karine Verbuggen – Head of Operations SLGS Karine Verbruggen has been appointed head of operations for global employee benefits within SLGS. She also is a member of the Management Board of Swiss Life Luxembourg. She joined SLGS in 2016 as head of the Business Engineering team after a career as Head

Aon Employee Benefits in May 2018 said that its Benefits and Trends Survey 2018 shows marked sector differences in the number of UK employers reporting employee stress and mental health-related illnesses. Eighty-four percent of employers overall said that they consider themselves responsible for influencing their employees’ health behaviors. Of the five markets analyzed (pharmaceutical, manufacturing, law & professional services, technology, and finance), the legal and professional services sector showed

Global foreign direct investment (FDI) flows fell by 23% in 2017, to $1.4 trillion from $1.9 trillion in 2016, according to UNCTAD’s World Investment Report 2018 that was released in June 2018. The decline contrasts with other macroeconomic variables, which saw substantial improvement in 2017. The global fall was caused in part by a 22% decrease in the value of cross-border mergers and acquisitions (M&As). But even discounting the

ANZ Bank New Zealand in June 2018 announced that Cigna will acquire OnePath Life for NZ$700 million. According to ANZ, the transaction is made at a “slight premium to embedded value and is expected to generate a gain on sale of around NZ$50 million.” The agreement also includes a 20-year partnership whereby Cigna will provide insurance policies for ANZ bank customers. ANZ said it intends for all staff involved

WellCare Health Plans in June 2018 announced that it has acquired Meridian Health Plan of Michigan, Meridian Health Plan of Illinois, and MeridianRx, a pharmacy benefit manager (PBM) for $2.5 billion in cash. The transaction is expected to close by the end of 2018. Meridian expects to generate more than $4.3 billion in total revenue in 2018. As a result of this transaction, WellCare will diversify its Medicaid portfolio through the addition of Michigan state, where

The former president of the People’s Insurance Company of China (PICC) in May 2018 was jailed for 11 years for taking bribes. Wang Yincheng, who was also a Communist Party vice-secretary at state-owned PICC, was convicted of receiving 8.7 million yuan ($1.4 million) in bribes from 2006 to 2016, in exchange for helping individuals and firms with project contracts, giving staff promotions, and hiring their children, the official People’s

Gallagher in May 2018 announced several acquisitions in the United States and England to bolster its retail property/casualty brokerage operations and employee benefits consulting services. Simi Valley, California-based Thomas Costello Insurance Agency is a retail property/casualty broker, and employee benefits consultant and broker, offering commercial and personal coverages to clients primarily across Southern California. Tom Costello and his associates will continue to operate from their current location under the direction of Scott

Aon in May 2018 announced the launch of its Carrier Solutions group, which will support and grow Aon’s network of Managing General Agents (MGAs) and Managing General Underwriters (MGUs) to better deliver innovative products, streamline transaction processes and give access to new and diverse sources of risk capital. Karl Hennessy has been named CEO. He brings more than 25 years of global insurance market experience and most recently served

Swiss Re in June 2018 published its SONAR Report, which identifies emerging geopolitical risks, the re-emergence of asbestos, especially in high growth markets, and the risks arising from new technologies such as cyber risks, biased algorithms, and the erosion of risk diversification as some of the key risks facing the re/insurance industry as well as society at large. The SONAR report is a publication based on the SONAR process,

AIG, after reaching agreement on the two largest plan termination transactions of 2017, in June 2018 announced that it has further expanded its presence in the pension risk transfer market. The two transactions, entered into by American General Life Insurance Company, part of AIG’s Life & Retirement business, represented over $1.5 billion in pension plan obligations covering more than 24,000 retirees, beneficiaries, deferred and active members. Pension risk transfer

Swiss Re and SoftBank in May 2018 agreed to end discussions about a potential minority investment of SoftBank in Swiss Re. No explanation was given. However, SoftBank was originally considering a stake of up to 33%, as well as several seats on the Swiss Re board of directors, whilst Swiss Re said the holding would probably not exceed 10%. GBV had reported SoftBank’s push to increase its revenue stream

Swiss Life Global Solutions in April 2018 announced the appointment of Arne Schweikhart as Relationship Manager in charge of multinationals based in Germany, strengthening its presence in the German market. Arne has a strong background in the German market as well as in the expatriate and cross-border business. He previously was corporate distribution manager Europe with Zurich Eurolife in Luxembourg; senior key account manager with IT services firm acarda;

Multinational pooling network MAXIS GBN, an AXA-MetLife joint venture, in May 2018 announced three appointments in its distribution department, all promotions of MAXIS team members. David Schupak to head Western Europe as well as the UK, Middle East & Africa David Schupak adds Western Europe to his current role leading the UK, Middle East & African region, reporting to Head of Distribution Andrew Stocker. In other words, his area of

Swiss Life Global Solutions in April 2018 signed a new partnership in Singapore with FWD, a provider of group life and group medical plans, in addition to the existing partnership with Prudential Singapore. The partnership with network partner Dubai Insurance Company has also been increased, leading to an enlarged collaboration in the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) region with countries such as Qatar, Oman, Kuwait, Bahrain and Saudi Arabia. By