Last month I was honored to be elected as Chairman of ACLI’s Board of Directors.
In addition to serving as Chairman, CEO and President of Boston Mutual Life Insurance Company, I now have the privilege to work on behalf of 280 ACLI member life insurance companies whose products and services help 90 million American families achieve financial security.
During my 33 years with Boston Mutual, I’ve witnessed first-hand how we support our customers through good times and bad. On a broader scale, my company has been helping Americans for more than 130 years. Many ACLI members have been around even longer. We’ve been there for our customers through many major events in our nation’s history, including the Flu Epidemic of 1918, World Wars I and II, the Great Depression, the 9-11 attacks and, of course, COVID.
Lawmakers in Washington D.C. and in the 50 state capitals can count on the life insurance industry’s long-term stability. We provide financial certainty for families in need. We make sure employers can support their workers. And we support local communities. Life insurers invest hundreds of millions of dollars every day throughout our nation, primarily through bond investments that drive economic and job growth.
Nevertheless, now is not the time to rest on our laurels. The COVID pandemic reaffirmed the critical importance of life insurance as our industry paid out record benefits to families and sales spiked to 30-year highs. Still, too few Americans have life insurance to protect them against a tragic loss. Our industry needs to further our efforts to make life insurance more accessible for all families. It is our collective commitment to support educational opportunities on the values of life insurance and to help dispel myths that may also act as a barrier to access.
At the same time, many Americans remain deeply concerned about their retirement security. With traditional pensions so rare, it’s no wonder that Americans are buying record numbers of annuities that can provide guaranteed income for life, like a pension. It’s crucial that low- and middle-income savers continue to have access to annuities. While we don’t currently sell annuities, it is important that these Americans – our customers – have access to the type of retirement security these products provide for them and their families when they retire.
While no one can predict what the future will hold, life insurers can make sure everyone can prepare for it. No matter their age, their job, their gender or their race, every American deserves the opportunity to build financial security that will serve them through all of life’s ups and downs. Life insurers have the tools and experience to help bring certainty to every family’s financial future.
Paul A. Quaranto, Jr., MBA, LLIF, is Chairman, CEO and President of Boston Mutual Life Insurance Company.
