A new InfoPath-based solution accelerator for the insurance industry will offer an alternative to paper-based forms. Working with the insurance industry, Microsoft developed the accelerator to reduce errors, speed the processing of insurance claims, and improve communications between various players in the industry. The company will also support a new task force that will address insurance industry security-related issues.

The Office Solution Accelerator for Insurance Forms was developed in cooperation with ACORD (Association for Cooperative Operations Research and Development), an insurance industry body, and provides XML forms and schema that duplicate the content of standard insurance industry forms. The forms can be filled out with InfoPath, an XML forms-based application that is part of the Office System. Other components of the accelerator include a set of workflow transactions for use with BizTalk Server 2004, prescriptive architecture guidelines, and code that can be used to develop Web services, security features, and standards for digitally signed documents.

Microsoft has formed an "Insurance Value Chain," made up of large systems integrators and smaller firms that specialize in insurance-industry technology, to promote the new accelerator and related products. Avanade, EDS, and Hewlett-Packard assist in configuring Microsoft platforms for the industry, and about a dozen other companies offer industry-specific software and services.

Microsoft and the insurance industry will also form a task force to focus on security issues, including user and workstation security, patch management, and identity management. More focus on security is critical because the industry has many players, some small and others large, who must constantly communicate and exchange documents. Independent agencies need to interact with large carriers, and the large number of computer systems from different firms used in such interactions makes the system, as a whole, vulnerable to viruses, Trojan horses, and other security threats for those involved.

More information about Microsoft’s work with the insurance industry is available at www.microsoft.com/Resources/FinancialServices/ACORD.aspx.