12/13/2024 | Press release | Distributed by Public on 12/13/2024 14:37
DECEMBER 13, 2024
Jefferson City- Today, Governor Mike Parson announced that Chlora Lindley-Myers will retire as Missouri Department of Commerce and Insurance (DCI) Director on December 31, 2024.
"Chlora has been a valued member of our Cabinet team since day one, and we greatly appreciate her service to the people of Missouri," Governor Parson said. "Her leadership helped us reform and reshape DCI to increase its efficiency as well as earn top ranks for having the lowest licensing burdens in the nation. Teresa and I wish Chlora and her family the best in whatever this next chapter of life brings for them."
"I am incredibly happy to have served the people of Missouri under Governor Parson's leadership," Director Lindley-Myers said.
Director Lindley-Myers was appointed Director of the Missouri Department of Insurance, Financial Institutions, and Professional Registration on March 6, 2017, and was confirmed by the Missouri Senate on April 13, 2017. She continued to serve in this leadership role during Governor Parson's administration. In August 2019, the department's name was changed to the Department of Commerce and Insurance, following the addition of the Public Service Commission and the Office of the Public Counsel to the existing insurance, finance, credit unions, and professional registration divisions.
Lindley-Myers chaired the Missouri Health Insurance Innovation Task Force, created by Executive Order 19-03 and issued by Governor Parson, which was charged with identifying innovative concepts to "improve access to affordable insurance options and access to health care services within the state while reducing the state's uninsured rates, with a particular emphasis on increasing access to health care in rural areas of the state."
Under her direction, DCI received reaccreditation twice, the most recent with distinction, earning high praise from the accreditation body for exemplary work and confidence that regulations are being implemented effectively to promote a strong and stable insurance market and a confident consumer environment. During her tenure, Missouri consumers also saw record amounts returned to them from their insurance companies through mediation work on complaints and the DCI's efforts to ensure insurer's compliance with state insurance laws.
Director Lindley-Myers has served as an insurance regulator for four decades. While director of DCI, she was elected the first Black woman to preside as the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) president.