“If you really want to do something, you’ll find a way.
If you don’t, you’ll find an excuse.”

Thank you to Pam Stetler and Patsy Lachat for setting up the legislative program at our monthly meeting. We had a very informative speaker, David Slavick, who is running for State Representative of the 109th district, Columbia County. Patsy is doing a good job sharing legislative information updates with all of us. If you have a legislative question or something to share, please contact Patsy.

Many of our members are attending the Council Day Conference November 10th and 11th. I will have a delegate report at the next association meeting. Thank you to those members who completed the award forms .I know it takes a lot of personal time to complete them and I appreciate your efforts. And to all members thank you for your time and talents that help IPSV remain a “recognized” association. Please be sure to notify the appropriate chairperson of your personal accomplishments throughout the year so we can include them in our reports.

Your help is needed at the Soup Kitchen on November 4th and at the Tree Fest on November 19th. Please bring red & white decorations and non-perishables to the meeting or make a monetary donation and I’ll purchase items. Call me with any questions regarding either charity event.

To all members I wish you a colorful Fall season and a happy Thanksgiving!

SECRETARY’S MINUTES……….Debbie Musgrave

The Insurance Professionals of Susquehanna Valley met on Wednesday October 18th at Portabella's.

President, Jeannie Upright, called the meeting to order at 6:15 PM.

Guests present were Diana Ent, Brittany Reese & guest speaker David Slavick.

The minutes were accepted as printed in the newsletter.

The Treasurers report was accepted and filed for audit.

After Barbara Kressler read the Collect, dinner was enjoyed by all present.

After dinner our speaker, David Slavick, candidate for State Representative for the 109th District spoke about how he wants to build on the strengths of Columbia county and grow economically if elected. He would like to see Columbia county become an "Energy Opportunity Zone". He also discussed various issues of importance to the insurance industry.

Committee reports:

Membership and PR - Gail asked everyone to add Betty Rafalko to our membership list. Her address is 335 Mossville Rd Benton Pa 17814 and her office phone # is 819-2000 or 819-4677 Ext. 126 and her email address is bettyrafalko@yahoo.com. Her birthday is August 1st.
A sign-up sheet was passed around for those willing to help at the Soup Kitchen on Nov 4th at 9AM and also for Tree Fest on Nov 19th at 2PM.
Gail also reported that the small games of chance permit has been received and we can have any type fund raiser raffles we would like to have until renewal date of October 2007. Also a reminder to sell your raffle tickets and bring in your money and tickets stubs to each meeting. Give the money to Pam and ticket stubs to Gail. Jeannie also gave more candy to Gail,Dee and Pam to sell. Anyone wanting to sell candy bars should contact Jeannie and she will bring them to the next meeting.

Education - Brenda reported that there are 5 students for the CPCU class.

Safety - Barbara asked for help in filling out the safety award form for Council Day in November.

Legislative - Jeannie asked for member information to complete the Legislative award form.

Horizon - no report

Betty Rafalko won the 50/50 drawing.

After For the Good of the Cause the meeting was adjourned at 8:30 PM

Acting Sec'y
Gail Bradley

EDUCATION…………….Brenda Weaver

Progressive Halcyon Ins. Co, v. Kennedy, PA Superior Court- Decided September 21, 2006.

Facts: The insured in this case owned two vehicles. One, a ford, was insured with progressive, and carried the full tort option. The other vehicle, a Nissan, was uninsured. The policyholder was involved in an accident with an unknown vehicle while driving his insured Ford. He made a claim for first- party and uninsured motorist benefits. Progressive sought to deny first-party benefits, and also to hold the policyholder to limited tort benefits in the uninsured action due to the fact that he owned an uninsured Nissan.

Procedure: The trial court held that Progressive could properly deny first-party benefits to their insured, but also ruled that the full tort benefits could not be reduced to limited tort benefits.

Progressive appealed this decision to the Superior Court.

Issue: What effect does the ownership of an uninsured vehicle have on a policyholder’s benefits?

Holding: If a policyholder owns an uninsured vehicle, the carrier can properly deny first-party benefits for any accident, regardless of whether the policyholder is driving another insured vehicle. However, in the same situation, where the policyholder is driving an insured vehicle while owning an uninsured vehicle and the insured vehicle is involved in an accident, the tort selection of that insured vehicle must be honored.

Reasoning: First, with regard to the first-party benefits, PA law reads:
An owner of a currently registered motor vehicle who does not have
financial responsibility or an operator or occupant of a recreational
vehicle not intended for highway use, motorcycle, motor driven cycle,
motorized pedal cycle or like type vehicle required to be registered under
this title cannot recover first party benefits.

The purpose of this law is to prevent uninsured motorist. For that reason, courts have held that even though an individual may be driving a fully insured vehicle, and has an accident in that vehicle, benefits will be excluded if that same individual owns another registered vehicle that does not have insurance.

With regard to tort selections, PA law reads:
An owner of a currently registered private passenger motor vehicle who
does not have financial responbility shall be deemed to have chosen the
limited tort alternative.

In the case at hand, the policyholder was driving an insured vehicle with full tort options. The carrier attempted to reduce the full tort to limited tort because the policyholder also owned an uninsured vehicle. However, the Superior Court held the law “was not intended to prelude a full tort claim where the plaintiff owned an uninsured motor vehicle that was not involved in the accident from which the claim arose.” The Court further held that while75 PA.C.S&171 unambiguously prevented a motorist, who owned an uninsured vehicle, from collecting first- party benefits, whether or not the uninsured vehicle was being operated, the General Assembly did not enact similar language limiting uninsured motorist claims.

Comment: This case serves as a stark reminder to agents that first party benefits will be denied in the case where a policyholder also owns a registered and uninsured vehicle, regardless of the fact that an insured vehicle was involved in the accident. Because of this, agents must confirm that this situation does not arise.

Where this is most common is the situation where an insured has a seasonal or inoperable vehicle, and coverage is dropped on that vehicle when it is not in use. Steps must be taken to assure that the vehicle is classified properly with PennDot, so that this exclusion does not apply. Agents must explain the consequence of owning an uninsured vehicle, as spelled out in this case, so that the insured’s take immediate and adequate action.

This information was obtained from IA&B.

PROGRAM AND MENU………Gail Bradley

The November 15th meeting will be held at Portabellas in Lightstreet. The social hour will begin at 5:30 and the meal will be served at 6pm. Snow date is November 16th.

The menu is as follows:
Salads: waldorf salad, fresh fruit cup and spinach mushroom salad
Entrée: sautéed beef tips and roast pork loin
Vegetables: oven roasted potatoes and green beans

The guest speaker for our November meeting will be Ted Wampole, LUTCF, from Liberty Mutual Insurance Group. He has been a favored speaker for the CPCU Chapter of Northeast PA, and comes to our association highly recommended as an outstanding speaker. He has several topics that he enjoys presenting and since this is our Safety meeting he has prepared a presentation on “On-Line-Safety”. I am sure that we will all come away from this presentation with a renewed respect for how we conduct ourselves while we do our business, “on-line”. Please mark you calendars for November 15th, and plan to attend this meeting, and bring a guest. .

Please RSVP by November 10th by emailing Gail Bradley at brado@ptd.net.

SAFETY…….Barbara Kressler

Driving Defensively

More than 41,000 people lose their lives in motor vehicle crashes each year and over two million more suffer disabling injuries, according to the National Safety Council. The triple threat of high speeds, impaired or careless driving and not using occupant restraints threatens every driver—regardless of how careful or how skilled.

Driving defensively means not only taking responsibility for yourself and your actions but also keeping an eye on "the other guy." The National Safety Council suggests the following guidelines to help reduce your risks on the road.

Don't start the engine without securing each passenger in the car, including children and pets. Safety belts save thousands of lives each year! Lock all doors.
Remember that driving too fast or too slow can increase the likelihood of collisions.
Don't kid yourself. If you plan to drink, designate a driver who won't drink. Alcohol is a factor in almost half of all fatal motor vehicle crashes.
Be alert! If you notice that a car is straddling the center line, weaving, making wide turns, stopping abruptly or responding slowly to traffic signals, the driver may be impaired.
Avoid an impaired driver by turning right at the nearest corner or exiting at the nearest exit. If it appears that an oncoming car is crossing into your lane, pull over to the roadside, sound the horn and flash your lights.
· Notify the police immediately after seeing a motorist who is driving suspiciously.
· Follow the rules of the road. Don't contest the "right of way" or try to race another car during a merge. Be respectful of other motorists.
· Don't follow too closely. Always use a "three-second following distance" or a "three-second plus following distance."
· While driving, be cautious, aware and responsible.

**Compliments of the National Safety Council

MEMBERSHIP AND PUBLIC RELATIONS…Gail Bradley

At our October meeting a sign-up sheet was passed to help with the Soup Kitchen in Danville on Saturday Nov.4th at 9AM. The following people volunteered to help: Brenda, Gail, Brittany Reese, Jeannie, Barbara Kressler & Lori.

Also passed was a sign-up sheet to help decorate for Tree Fest on Sunday Nov. 19th at 2:00 at the Caldwell Consistory in Bloomsburg: Jeannie, Barbara Kressler, Betty, Pam & maybe Patsy have volunteered to help. For more inforamtion please contact Jeannie. Remember to bring non-perishable items to the next meeting also to put into a basket for under the tree at Tree Fest.

Jeannie brought bags with breast cancer mints and other information to have distributed for October's breast cancer awareness campaign. Bags were taken by Gail, Brenda, Lori, Pam & Barbara Kressler & Patsy.

I will be developing a letter to send to local insurance businesses as a letter of introduction and an invitation to join us at a monthly meeting to see if we can get some more potential members. If you have a contact name that you think may be interested, please see that I get it so that I can put them on my list.

Also remember to continue to check out our website at www.IPSV.net and also refer others to our website. Austin is doing a great job of keeping it updated and is prompt at adding any additional information that we want to have added. Also if you have any photos that you would like to have posted on the website, email them to me and I will have him post them.

Remember to continue to invite other insurance professionals to join us at a monthly meeting so that we can continue to strive.

LEGISLATIVE…………………Patsy Lachat

Reminder to all members: Please use your hard won privilege and cast your vote on November 7th.

LEG REG REVIEW
2006, Twenty-ninth Issue
LEG REG REVIEW is a periodic newsletter produced by
PHILLIPS ASSOCIATES, a professional lobbying and
consultant firm based near the State Capitol. It
contains news on the legislative and regulatory scene
in Pennsylvania that may be of use to insurance
producers, companies, and business parties. It is a
free Member Service if you belong to the Pennsylvania
Association of Health Underwriters or the PA Surplus
Lines Association. Subscription information may be
obtained by contacting PHILLIPS ASSOCIATES at
717/728-1217 FAX 717/728-1164 or e-mail
xenobun@aol.com.  Please email jtrout2792@aol.com
supplying both your e-mail and fax numbers in order to
convert this publication to e-mail. If you wish to no
longer receive it, please tell us.

CHIP EXPANSION CONTRIBUTES ACRIMONY TO END OF SESSION
Governor Rendell's plan to dramatically expand the
Children's Health Insurance Program (CHIP) generated
controversy last week with the Pennsylvania
Association of Health Underwriters' (PAHU) Day on the
Hill focusing on that issue. The proposal calls for
CHIP eligibility expanded to 350% of the poverty level
($70,000 for a family of four). Proponents claim that
133,000 children are uninsured and that expanding CHIP
would reduce their numbers. Opponents such as PAHU
break the 133,000 into parts. 56,000-plus are eligible
for Medicaid but are not enrolled. 37,000 are eligible
for "free" fully taxpayer subsidized CHIP while
another 17,000 qualify for the partially subsidized
CHIP but have not enrolled. Instead of major
expansion, why not address the groups who are already
eligible say opponents. PAHU joined Rep. Sam Rohrer
(R-Berks) and the Commonwealth Foundation at a press
conference to ask that a study be done on "crowd out"
where businesses and employees choose to act in their
rational economic self-interest by getting out of
private sector insurance in favor of the expanded
CHIP. If documented by a study of adultBasic, another
quasi-entitlement program with a waiting period AND a
lengthy waiting list of people who may have had
private sector coverage before, expanding CHIP might
lead to enlarging the numbers of the uninsured.
Democratic reaction was harsh with House Democratic
leadership (Reps. DeWeesee and Veon) saying that
General Assembly leaders promised in June during the
budget deliberations to pass Cover All Kids. Their
reaction: "We didn't promise to wait three months and
then bring up vague concerns about future funding in
future years, but that is what some Republicans have
done.We didn't promise to call for a lengthy study of
the entire spectrum of health insurance needs before
moving forward on children's health as some
Republicans have done.we promised to do it now."
Governor Rendell's weekly message likewise chided
Republicans for breaking a promise.
The letter being referred to was signed by all four
caucuses on June 30. It noted hard work in completing
review and agreement on legislation necessary to
enable enrollment of children in Cover All Kids
proposal but noted that study had to be undertaken re
compliance with federal rules. The letter also noted
that funding had been placed in the FY 2006-07 Budget
to confirm a commitment to work with the Governor's
Office to craft the statutory language.
Although there are widely differing scenarios, there
appears to be Republican leadership hesitancy in
moving forward, particularly on adopting the full
extent of what the Governor proposed.

OTHER ISSUES TO WATCH
. Senate Bill 1335 would re-authorize legislation
designed to keep PA in compliance with HIPAA reforms.
If not enacted by end of session, PA could lose its
regulatory authority over the individual health market
if HHS decides to pre-empt the Insurance Department.
This bill passed the Senate and could be a vehicle for
adding the CHIP expansion language in the House.
. Lobbyist disclosure legislation passed the House and
awaits Senate concurrence. If passed, it will roughly
model existing rules set forth by Senate Resolution 2
but will affect lobbyists and their clients in all
expenditures to Senate, House, and Administration.
. House Bill 93 directs Department of Public Welfare
to seek a Medicaid waiver from the Federal Government
so as to permit Long-Term Care Partnerships in PA. It
passed the House but was amended by the Senate Banking
& Insurance Committee. It still needs a full Senate
vote and House concurrence before session end.
. The House passed the Gambling Integrity Act to
prevent public officials from having any stake in
gambling and to eliminate use of the middleman when
gaming interests need to buy slot machine equipment.
It also provides more public access to Gaming
Commission records. The Senate must vote to concur.
. The House passed a bill designed to help local
pharmacists cope with greater use of mail-order
pharmacies by insurers. House Bill 814 is regarded as
an "Any Willing Provider" bill. It goes to the Senate.

. Two other non-insurance bills passing the House
were:
. House Bill 2553 (Reichley-R-Lehigh) enabling local
governments to pass senior property tax and rent
rebate options.
. The House passed a number of crime measures stemming
from the Committee of the Whole discussion on crimes
and violence, among them stiffer penalties for
gun-trafficking and possession of a firearm by a
felon.

UPCOMING COMMITTEE WORK
As the pre-election legislative session draws to a
close, committee work is winding down except for
committee meetings called off the floor of the House
for quick action. One committee meeting scheduled is
House Labor Relations which is slated to consider
Senate Bill 733 (Gordner-R-Columbia) amending the PA
Occupational Disease Act.

THINGS TO NOTE
. Thomson Prometric sent out an October 16 memo to CE
providers informing them that as of 1/1/07, no course
completion rosters may be submitted by paper. After
that date, all submissions to Thomson Prometric of
class rosters must be electronic. In a separate memo,
Thomson Prometric reminded CE providers that
Pennsylvania requires that rosters be submitted within
15 calendar days after the class.
. The PA Health Cost Care Containment Council has
issued a hospital performance report. Details:

MISCELLANEOUS……..

The Insurance Professionals of Susquehanna Valley now has its own web site. All meeting dates and officers are listed as well as a copy of the newsletter.
 
Visit us at www.ipsv.net
 
If you have anything that you would like to see on the web page please send the information to Gail at brado@ptd.net
 
Go check it out!!
 

Remember to:

Bring non-perishable items to the next meeting for Tree Fest basket!

IMPORTANT DATES

Happy Birthday To:

No one this time

Vote on November 7th. It’s your privilege and your duty!