..........................Welcome to "The Classroom"....................

 

    

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

                                     

 

 

 

 

  

 

 

 

 

     
     
    

     
     
         

            

 COURSE CAPSULES    

       new - THE PATIENT PROTECTION ACT (REVISITED)  Since June 25, 2012 this has been the health law of the land.  There are liksly to be changes in the coming months and years.  This course updates and brings the "Affordable Health Care Act" class into 2020 and details what is likely to be the future of this health law.

       NEW = DISABILITY BY SOCIAL SECURITY Since 1958 disability benefits have been part of Social Security.  There is a ot of mis-information asto how to go about applying for it and what can be expected bo happed in the application process.  Also manky people make criticalmistakes in both understanding how disability works thru Social Security and how to maximize their chanes of a quick approval.  This class is designed to show both the critical errors peope commonly make in the application process and in the follow up that is so often necessary.

      LONG TERM CARE - A CONSUMER'S GUIDE  Consumers are encouraged to "ask questions" with regard to any insurance arrangement but none are more important than long-term care insurance.  Problem oftentimes is simply that the consumer doesn't know what questions to ask.  So; it becomes the responsibility of the Professional to know the more common questions and concerns the consumer has and effectively address them before selling anything.  The sales will come only when the consumer understands the product, buys into the concept and trusts the insurance professional. 

   THIRD PARTY ADMINISTRATION:    With the Affordable Health Care Act still the law of the nation, many companies are evaluating the risk posed to their employees and what can be done from a management level to reduce and/or midify them.  Therefore more companies are encorporating health awareness programs and along with them the viability of self-insuring with third party administration.  The experience underwriting process used with the self-insured company makes this an attractive alternative to traditionsl group insurance.

    VIATICALS, LIFE SETTLEMENTS & ACCELERATED BENEFITS:  This course will not only partner with our class on Tax Issues for Life & Health products but also give us an in-depth look here with what people are being advised on what they can do with their death benefit, not just their cash value.  A requirement for those holding a Viatical license and a valuable resource for those who do not.  Serious tax issues can arise from a careless market. 

      CONDUCT BECOMING  Perhaps a bit more academic than our other ethics classes, but still a great class.  We look at the state regulations that seem to get us into the most trouble and cause the most problems.  We look at current events that have ethical issues such as the modern view of lying vs. acting.  We look at the specifics of rebating, twisting, churning and how to avoid problems both now and years from now. 

      ALPHABET SOUP BY MEDICARE  So we have Medicare A, B, C, D and Supplements A, B, C, , D, F, G, K, L, M and N.  And that's only because Medicare has gotten rid of Supplements H, I, J twice and now E.  So, is it any wonder that people who do not deal with this and even those who do get confused as to whether we are talking about Medicare benefits or Medigap types.  We try realy hard in this class to sort all this out and have the Producer leave with a better grasp as to what Medicare's identifying designations mean.  Come enjoy the alphabet soup.

      THE SECURITY IN SOCIAL SECURITY  In spite of the rhetoric we hear about Social Securty and the future problems it may face, the fact remains:  Social Security has been with us since 1935 even though it became known as Social Security in 1954.  It has not done all that bad of a job and for nearly 2/3 of middle income workers, Social Security IS their retiemet plan.  It needs to be protected and it, in fact, is.  The Congressional Budget Office has a different spin on the Social Security going broke scenerio.  Its NOT going broke, in fact it can't go broke.  A real in-depth look at the horror stories we continue to hear.  Not true!

     DEMYSTIFYING MEDICARE PART "D"  Would you invest over $5,000 to get barely $1,900 back?  That's how Medicare "D" works until you are out f the donut hole.  Medicare "D" is confusing by design.   There are a lot of interested groups making unbelievable profit from the loopholes in Medicare "D". 
And those same people have the general elder population scared to not have prescription drug coverage thru a "D" plan.  Fact is; it doen't have to be a "D" plan.  It only has to be a plan substantially equivilent to a "D" plan.  Simply put; everyone is suposed to have "credible" coverage.  True...but it doesn't have to be a Medicare "D" plan.  Come see how the public is being tricked.  Come see how the math works.

      BASICS OF THE REVERSE MORTGAGE  An introduction to an increasingly popular financial device heavily advertised by compensated celebrity spokespersons.  The message in the advertising is but the tip of the proverbial iceberg so far as reverse mortgages are concerned.  One needs to first realize that a reverse mortgage is after all a loan, not a gift or an entitlement.  There are a lot of variables and moving parts to these.  This course will break the ice and afford financial professonals the information they need to answer customer's question.

     INTRODUCTION TO LIVING TRUSTS   There is an increasing popularity in using Living Trusts for estate planning instead of the more traditional will/probate prcess.  While there are advantages to the Living Trust arragement, they are not necessarily the answer many think it is.  This introductory course will cover the anatomy of the Living Trust arrangement and emphasize that this is not somethng the uninitiated should attempt without professional input.  Trusts of any kind can become traps and cause more trouble and expense than intended.   

      TAXING ISSUES WITH LIFE & HEALTH INSURANCE   We cannot give legal advice, but we are expected to be able to explain an insurance policy, which is a legal document, to our customers.  We cannot give tax advice either, but nearly every product we sell has or could have tax consequences attached to it.  We are expected to know how our products work and that includes the tax issues.  One question popular with "market conduct" people is; "...did you explain the potential tax issues of this transactions to the customer...".  So, while we do not give tax "advice" we are expected to be able to give tax information and answer our customers questions.  This course will surprise many with the amount of tax issues we are involved with. 

     ANNUITY ANATOMY    A quick 2 hour review of the concept and history of annuities in our country.  We discuss the treatment of money going in, the funding mechanisms and how money is treated coming out.  There is a "reason" why our tax code allows for pre-tax funding of retirement income plans.  This course will provide a short guide for the general public and a review for everyone else.  People are confused by the negatives they have been hearing about anuities, particularly by those who make a living selling something else!  

       THE SUITABILITY OF PRODUCT SELECTION -  An analysis of the suitabiltiy of the products we commonly sell.  Market conduct people cannot define "suitable", but they certainly know what it is when there is a problem.  We look at Whole Life, Term, Universal Life, several forms of trusts and annuities all of which are or could be suitable financial vehicles under the right conditions. 

     PRE-NEED REGULATION AND PROCESS - This course, while open to the general public will probably be of more interest to funeral directors and those who work directly in the pre-need or final expense market.  We review the Pre-Need Regulaions with particular emphasis in the areas which seem to cause the most trouble between the two types of producers.  We incorporate the elements of Single Premium Life and address the common questions that arise with Long Term Care, Long Term Care Partnership plans and medicaid (Title XIX).

     PUSHING UP DAISIES II- (The 2nd version of one of our most popular courses) More creative things people try to do with wills and trusts using our products and why it get's thrown out in probate.  Why it's not a good idea to put "Cousin Charlie" in the will for $1.00 and how to stay on the same pae as the attorney.  The glossary of terms we develop and explan is, by itself, worth your time to attend. 

     UNETHICAL CREATIVITY -  So!  It's the customer who is unethical!  This unethical stuff is not always our fault. In this class we identify the characteristics of the unethical customer by education, culture and most of all personality.  Every personality type prsents an unique challenge for us, but if we identify the ethical composite of the customer it makes our jobs easier and being unethical with us more difficult.  Still our most popular ethics class. 

     WHEN IT GET'S PERSONAL - Academic ethical principles are easy to adopt with talking about a hypothetical problem.  But; it's often an entirely different story when it's something tha involves us personally.  It's not business in this class, it's personal.  When things require both our attention and our finances something has to give.  The question is...What?  In this class we largely interact with ethcal issues that have cofronted us on a very personal basis.  We investigate ethical problems and delemas and as a class usually come up with conclusions that match our personal ethical omposite.  An interesting trip outside the ethical box...you'll enjoy this.   

     BUT HE DIDN'T DIE! - So our client is disabled and about to lose everythig.  He go's to his attorney to see if anyting can be done for him.  And the first question the attorney asks is if his insurance agent ever mentioned an income replacement policy to him.  And as soon as the answer is "no"...now what?  Income replacement policies are going to grow in importance the more the Affordable Health Care go's in force.  It never hurts to review the basics of this insurance product as it protects our most valuable asset.

     TRUST ME...SIGN HERE - An ethics class dealing with the one thing we never want to hear...That's not what you told me!"  Expecially if it's exactly what we did say and that very thing is represents the problem we're facing.  In this class, we work with ethical delmas nt caused by us.  Usually the problem was caused by another agent who had the client before we did.  But the customer is unhappy and we are the one's who have to deal with him.  This class suggests a few things that may help. 

   NEW FOR 2021... ANNUITY SUITABILITY...The scope of annuities and the creativity of their use has entered a new arena.  What used to be unpopular has now become a viable strategy to retirement planning.  Even if you don't sell snnuities, you probably should learn about them.  This course comes with 4 hours of CE credit and satisfies Iowa's requrement.  Unfortunately it does NOT satisfy Nebraska's requirement.

     UNIVERSAL LIFE:  THE RUBE GOLDBERG MACHINE - Universal life has truly evolved into a Rube Goldberg machine.  Goldberg was a Pulitzer prize nngcrtonist who drew very complicated machines designed to do one very simple thing.  And Universal Life is a classic example.  Too many moving parts, a complete overhaul of what we have come to know as 'whole life' insurance.  A different cost basis.  A different cash flow.  An elaborate set of eaborate rules.  And then the IRS got involved.  For those newer to the profession, you won't believe what all went on in the '80's with this product.  Those who survived all this think I'm doing stand-up comedy...I assure you there was nthing funny about it.  Either way...you'll enjoy this history lesson. 

     THE 5 O'CLOCK WHISTLE - Incorporating IRS Publications 950 and 990 into a class representing our day to day business can be both confusing and difficult.  This course takes the rules, applies them to the various types of retirement income arrangements both qualified and non-qualified and makes this otherwise complicated process more simple.  Even if you don't sell retirement plans to groups, you have a business...right?  And it never hurts if you, yourself, get an update on the very rules you have to work with.  It's sort of a parity on "Retiremnt Plans for Dummies; A Review for Everyone Else.

     FINANCIAL PRIVACY - An in-depth look at te safeguards being used by banks, insurance companies, financial service organizations and the Supreme Court as regards our fourth amndment rights to provacy.  We also take time to look into money laundering and the difficult time our legal system has in getting any conviction for money laundering.  Finally we do a bit of futuristic guessing as there appears to be a lessening for the need of currency.  Some of the proposed alternatives are interesting.

     WHO GET'S WELL...WHO GET'S WEALTHY - With any contrversy, there must be a villian!  In the early '90's it was the drug companies.  Today it's the insurance industry.  This course presents a review of health care economics without necessarily going totally into the Affordable Health Care Act itsef.  There is plenty of other information available.  We go after the pharmaceutical companies quite aggressively.  We will look at cost, availability the delivery system and the creative manuevering being used by the medical and pharmiceutical industries to protect profit at all costs.  (This class has been one of our most requested)

     BUSINESS INSURANCE - A rather basic overview of business insurance arrangements.  We look at the advantages and disadvantes of several business arrangements.  We work with cross purchase, entiy, stock purchase and stock redemption modes. We talk briefly on split dollar and IRS section 162 set-ups.  Possibly a   bit basic for the experenced professional, but it never hurts to review. 

   

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