The Pennsylvania Insurance Department (PID) has launched a new program aimed at supporting innovators with bright ideas for insurance solutions.
The Keystone Smart Launch program helps reduce barriers to launching cutting-edge insurance products in Pennsylvania by speeding up the regulatory process. It is open to regulated and non-regulated insurance companies, and to both established insurers and start-ups.
“The Smart Launch program is open to both regulated and non-regulated entities in the commonwealth looking to introduce novel insurance products and services in Pennsylvania,” said Pennsylvania Insurance Commissioner Jessica Altman in a release. “Bringing a new product to the market can be a frustrating process, but Smart Launch will make it easier to navigate the regulatory considerations and challenges that can bar progress and innovation.”
Altman added that through Smart Launch and the open communication channels it will create, the PID believes it can enable “an easier, more efficient process to bring new and better options to the market,” while ensuring that the department provides the same robust level of consumer protection.
Insurance product ideas can be submitted through the Smart Launch Idea Portal on the PID’s website. The ideas are then subjected to an internal review by the Smart Launch team – composed of experts within the PID who can provide feedback on ideas that may impact the state’s insurance market.
The internal team will then reach out to the submitter to offer information on the state’s regulatory process, while highlighting potential considerations regarding consumer protections. According to the PID, addressing these considerations may help expedite the product launch.
"Despite the challenges that the commonwealth, and the world, has endured during the ongoing pandemic, Pennsylvania's insurance market continues to introduce pioneering new insurance products and solutions,” said Altman. "PID is proud to support innovation in the industry and hopes to better serve both Pennsylvania insurance companies and consumers with this new program."
