Jefferson City, Mo. - John M. Huff, director of the Missouri Department of Insurance, has been  elected chair of the Midwest Zone of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners during the NAIC's fall meeting. In this position, Huff will serve on the NAIC's Executive Committee, the leadership body for the national association.

"State insurance commissioners and their departments are the experts in regulation of our nation's insurance sector, and I'm honored to serve in this leadership position for NAIC," said Huff. "NAIC is an endless source of support and expertise for insurance departments as we fulfill our mission of protecting consumers and overseeing healthy, competitive insurance markets."

Huff was elected chair by his fellow insurance regulators from the Midwest Zone, which consists of the insurance departments of Missouri, Iowa, Oklahoma, Kansas, Nebraska, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Illinois, Indiana, North and South Dakota, Michigan and Ohio.

Also at the fall meeting, Huff was elected vice chair of the Interstate Insurance Product Regulation Commission. The commission is a partnership among state insurance regulators that reviews certain types of insurance policies, ensuring they meet certain standards before they are sold to consumers. Insurance policies that can be filed with the compact include annuities, life, long-term care and disability insurance.

Gov. Jay Nixon signed House Bill 577 in 2009, which made Missouri a member of the compact. Operating since 2006, the compact now has 41 member states representing two-thirds of the premium volume nationwide.

Huff's other leadership positions with the NAIC include:

• NAIC's representative on the U.S. Financial Stability Oversight Council
• Chair of the Market Information Systems Task Force
• Member of the Market Regulation and Consumer Affairs (D) Committee
• Member of the International Insurance Relations (EX) Leadership Group
• Member of the International Insurance Relations (G) Committee
• Co-chair of the Group Solvency Issues Working Group, part of the NAIC's Solvency Modernization Initiative

The Missouri Department of Insurance is a member of NAIC, as are the corresponding departments of 49 other states, the District of Columbia and the five U.S. territories.

The NAIC  is the U.S. standard-setting and regulatory support organization created and governed by the chief insurance regulators from the 50 states, the District of Columbia and five U.S. territories. Through the NAIC, state insurance regulators establish standards and best practices, conduct peer review, and coordinate their regulatory oversight. NAIC staff supports these efforts and represents the collective views of state regulators domestically and internationally. NAIC members, together with the central resources of the NAIC, form the national system of state-based insurance regulation in the U.S.