HR0316 97TH GENERAL ASSEMBLY

HR0316 LRB097 11786 KXB 54985 r

HOUSE RESOLUTION

WHEREAS, Michael T. McRaith began his service as Director of the Illinois Department of Insurance on March 21, 2005; and

WHEREAS, Since 2005, Director McRaith has served as President of the Illinois Comprehensive Health Insurance Plan and has supervised the Senior Health Insurance Program; and

WHEREAS, During his tenure, Director McRaith has been a tireless advocate for insurance consumers in Illinois and across the United States; and

WHEREAS, Director McRaith successfully advocated for the reestablishment of the Illinois Department of Insurance as an independent agency of State government, a position it held for more than a century prior to its consolidation with several other State agencies in 2004; and

WHEREAS, Director McRaith has been a leader in developing, drafting, and advocating for State and national health insurance reforms that benefit patients, families, and small employers in Illinois; and

WHEREAS, Director McRaith led the Department's investigation into the practice of contingent commission payments by insurers and negotiated national settlement agreements on behalf of the Department and the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC); and

WHEREAS, Director McRaith supervised the solvent run-off of Kemper Insurance Group, the largest insurer run-off in U.S. history; and

WHEREAS, Director McRaith was elected Secretary-Treasurer of the NAIC in 2010, and has previously served as Chairman of the NAIC's Midwest Zone and Chair or Vice Chair of numerous substantive committees, including the Property and Casualty (C) Committee, the Rating Agency Working Group, Industry Liaison Committee, the Health Insurance Exchange Working Group, and the Broker Activities Task Force; and

WHEREAS, Director McRaith represented the NAIC at the international Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development and on the International Association of Insurance Supervisors Corporate Governance Subcommittee; and

WHEREAS, Director McRaith's work with the NAIC has ensured that Illinois consumers and domestic insurers are nationally and internationally represented; and

WHEREAS, Director McRaith has testified on behalf of the State of Illinois and the NAIC before the U.S. Senate Special Committee on Aging, the U.S. Senate Committee on the Judiciary, the U.S. Senate Committee on Finance, twice before the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs, the U.S. Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions, twice before the U.S. House Subcommittee on Capital Markets, Insurance and Government Sponsored Enterprises, the U.S. House Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Credit, and the President's Antitrust Modernization Commission; and

WHEREAS, Director McRaith helped convene the first National Catastrophe Insurance Summit and was appointed to serve as Chair of the Illinois Seismic Safety Task Force; and

WHEREAS, Director McRaith is not only a dedicated public servant, but also a friend, a leader, and an inspiration to those who work with him; and

WHEREAS, Director McRaith demonstrates the same level of passion and commitment in his personal life, serving on the Executive Committee of the AIDS Foundation of Chicago and the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention, Chicago Chapter; and

WHEREAS, Director McRaith has been appointed by the Secretary of the U.S. Treasury to serve as the first Director of the Federal Insurance Office and will be leaving his post as Director of the Department of Insurance on May 31, 2011; therefore, be it

RESOLVED, BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES OF THE NINETY-SEVENTH GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we thank Michael T. McRaith for his service to the people of the State of Illinois and wish him continued success and happiness in the future; and be it further

RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be presented to Michael T. McRaith as a symbol of our respect and esteem.