Former Nebraska Senator to Lead Life Agency

Benjamin Nelson (Photo: Insurance Care Direct)

Insurance Care Direct, a life and health agency, has hired one of the best-known figures in the insurance industry to be its new chief executive officer.

The Deerfield Beach, Florida-based agency's new CEO is Ben Nelson.

Ben Nelson was the governor of Nebraska from 1991 to 1999; a U.S. senator from 2001 through 2013; and the CEO of the National Association of Insurance Commissioners from 2013 through 2016.

Earlier in his career, Nelson was CEO of the Central National Insurance Group. He has also served as Nebraska's insurance commissioner.

Since Nelson left the NAIC, he has been chairman of Nelson, Taplin, Goldwater, an insurance regulatory affairs consulting firm.

At Insurance Care Direct, Nelson is succeeding Seth Cohen. Cohen helped start the agency, in 2001.

Insurance Care Direct has also announced two other high-profile exchange appointment announcements.

The firm has promoted John Doak to chief operating officer, from executive vice president of regulatory affairs and business development.

John Doak and Christa Rapoport

Doak was the Oklahoma insurance commissioner from 2011 until this past January, and he was also active at the NAIC.

Doak has a bachelor's degree from the University of Oklahoma. Before becoming the Nebraska commissioner, he worked at Marsh, Aon Risk Services, HNI Risk Services, and Ascension Insurance.

In the past, he served on the advisory board of Nelson, Taplin, Goldwater.

Rapoport, the new general counsel, earned a bachelor's degree in nursing from Rutgers University-Camden before getting her law degree at the University of Virginia.

She has worked as an associate general counsel at American International Group Inc., U.S. senior counsel at Tokio Marine Seguradora S/A, and as head of compliance or legal affairs at several other insurers and insurance advisory firms. Since 2014, she has been senior vice president for regulatory strategy and compliance at Nelson, Taplin, Goldwater.

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