The National Association of Insurance Commissioners named its 2009 funded and unfunded consumer liaison representatives today.

Established in 1992, the program promotes consumer interaction with the NAIC's members, the insurance industry and interested parties through the individuals' dedication and commitment to serving the public interest.

The Kansas City, Mo.-based association said 13 of the funded consumer representatives participated in the program in 2008, while three are new to the program this year.

The 2009 NAIC funded consumer liaison representatives are:

o Betty Ahrens, executive director for Iowa Citizen Action Network in Coralville, Iowa.

o Amy Bach, executive director for United Policyholders in San Francisco.

o Birny Birnbaum, executive director of the Center for Economic Justice in Austin, Texas.

o Pamela J. Bolton, director of policy and research for Texas Watch in Austin.

o Brendan M. Bridgeland, director for the Center for Insurance Research in Cambridge, Mass.

o Brenda J. Cude, professor at the University of Georgia in Athens, Ga.

o Evelyn Dacalos Gay (Langga), project director for Elder Rights Project, Georgia Legal Services in Garfield, Ga.

o Bonita A. Kallestad, attorney at law for Mid-Minnesota Legal Assistance, Western Minnesota Legal Services in Wilmar, Minn.

o Karrol Kitt, associate professor at The University of Texas at Austin.

o Sonja L. Larkin-Thorne in Avon, Conn.

o Kevin P. Lembo, state healthcare advocate, state of Connecticut with the office of the Healthcare Advocate in Hartford, Conn.

o Kevin Lucia, assistant research professor at Georgetown University, Washington, D.C.

o Sally Baker McCarty, insurance and advocacy consultant for the National Hemophilia Foundation, Hemophilia of Indiana in Indianapolis.

o S. Colleen Repetto of Fair Insurance Rates in Monroe, Fla.

o Daniel Schwarcz, associate professor of law at the University of Minnesota Law School in Minneapolis.

o Gregory D. Squires, professor of sociology and public policy and public administration at George Washington University in Washington, D.C.

Ms. Bolton, Ms. Larkin-Thorne and Ms. Repetto are new NAIC funded consumer representative for this year.

The NAIC has also named Howard Goldblatt, who is director of government affairs for the Coalition Against Insurance Fraud in Washington, D.C., as an unfunded consumer representative.

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