Treasury to open funds to some insurers

The Wall Street Journal said Wednesday the program to include insurance companies in the Troubled Asset Relief Program would be announced within the next several days.

The move would be designed protect companies that have fallen on hard times and their clients. For millions of U.S. citizens, financial security for their families is tied to life insurance policies.

The industry, overall, has lost about 40 percent of its share value in 2009, the Journal said.

In the past year, several large insurance firms have invested in regulated banks to qualify for federal assistance, which was originally designed to give financial firms a cushion against losses. Hartford Financial Services Group Inc., Genworth Financial Inc. and Lincoln National Corp. have bought regulated banks and applied for various forms of federal relief funds, the Journal said.

Prudential Financial Inc., owners of a thrift, has also applied for assistance.

"We look forward to the official word from Treasury," Whit Cornman, a spokesman for the American Council of Life Insurers told The Journal.

Copyright 2009 by United Press International.