Since the financial crisis of 2008 and 2009, when employees saw their defined contribution plan balances plummet, retirement-income security has been a hot-button issue. Moreover, as the retirement world continues to evolve into a “defined contribution plan universe,” talk has accelerated about how to ensure that DC programs, including plans, can provide participants with a guaranteed stream of income that cannot be outlived.

Earlier this year, the Obama administration released a fact sheet stating that the administration is “promoting the availability of annuities and other forms of guaranteed lifetime income, which transform savings into guaranteed future income, reducing the risks that retirees will outlive their savings or that their retirees' living standards will be eroded by investment losses or inflation.”

In turn, the Departments of Labor and the Treasury Department issued a request for information (RFI) earlier this year, seeking advice about how DC plans and individual retirement accounts can be enhanced to deliver on the goal of guaranteed lifetime income. The responses and comments received are currently being analyzed.

There is, of course, reason for concern. The most recent Employee Benefits Research Institute (EBRI) Retirement Readiness Rating found that dramatically high percentages of Americans--even those in the upper-income categories—are likely to run short of money after 10 to 20 years in retirement.

With the spotlight now clearly on annuities, please join us for a comprehensive look at annuities and what plan sponsors can do to help generate a lifetime income for their participants. In just 90 minutes, our stellar panel will cover:

• Where annuities now stand,
• Why plan sponsors don’t offer and plan participants don’t demand annuities in their plans,
• What changes need to be made on a legislative and regulatory level to make annuities more usable for 401(k) participants,
• What needs to change to make annuities more attractive, and
• How the industry is responding with the design of new products.  

James Lyday, Sr. Vice President, Distribution, Prudential; Mark Foley, Vice President, Product Development, Prudential