BETHESDA, MD--(Marketwire - March 17, 2009) - The Insurance Marketplace Standards Association (IMSA) has appointed three new members to its Board of Directors:

--  Salene Hitchcock-Gear, President and CEO of Acacia Life Insurance
    Company and President and CEO of Ameritas Investment Corp.
--  John Doscher, Vice President & Chief Compliance Officer of Prudential
    Annuities
--  Randy Scritchfield, President of Montgomery Financial.
    

"These three experienced marketplace leaders bring important industry perspectives and will provide valuable input to IMSA's Board," said Scott Curtis, President of Raymond James and Chairman of the IMSA Board of Directors. "We're looking forward to their contributions to the organization."

"This is an important time for Americans as they confront the need for financial security and are concerned about purchasing suitable insurance products to meet their needs," said IMSA President and CEO Brian Atchinson. "These distinguished professionals bring experienced viewpoints on industry and consumer issues as we establish national standards that promote ethical business practices to benefit consumers, companies and distributors."

Atchinson provided the following background on the new board members:

Salene Hitchcock-Gear

Salene Hitchcock-Gear is President and CEO of Acacia Life Insurance Company and President and CEO of Ameritas Investment Corp. Prior to serving Acacia Life and Ameritas Investment Corp., she served as vice president of strategic direction and financial planning products for Prudential Life Insurance Company and as manager of the advanced markets department at Metropolitan Life Insurance Company.

John Doscher

John Doscher is Vice President and Chief Compliance Officer of Prudential Annuities. He has provided compliance support and oversight for 18 years in various compliance and internal audit positions at Prudential. During that time, John served as the Chief Compliance Officer for Prudential Investment Management Services LLC, the broker-dealer that distributed many of Prudential's variable annuity and mutual funds products. In addition to his experiences at Prudential, John was a consultant for Price Waterhouse in their Investment Management Industry Management Consultant Services Unit.

Randy Scritchfield

Randy L. Scritchfield, CFP™, LUTCF is President of Montgomery Financial Group, a financial services brokerage and consulting firm based in Maryland. Randy has a long history of both achievement in and governance of the Million Dollar Round Table (MDRT), and he also serves on the Finance Committee of National Association of Insurance and Financial Advisors.

IMSA is the premier, national standards-setting organization for the life insurance, annuity and long-term care insurance marketplace for individually sold products. Qualified companies commit to maintaining high ethical standards and to being fair, honest, and open in the way they advertise, sell and service their products. IMSA updates its standards regularly with input from a Standards Advisory Committee consisting of representatives from AARP, NAIC, FINRA, rating agencies, and product distribution organizations. For more information and a list of IMSA-qualified companies, visit www.IMSAethics.org.