Indiana suspends insurance broker for receiving Anthem’s confidential info from brother

The Indiana Department of Insurance has issued a 90-day suspension for the license of a southern Indiana broker who it said improperly received confidential information belonging to Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield from his brother, who worked for the company.

Alan Sword, who sold Medicare Advantage plans on behalf of Anthem, was suspended in an emergency order issued Jan. 30 by Amy Beard, commissioner of the Indiana Department of Insurance.

According to Beard’s findings of fact, Sword improperly received confidential, proprietary and trade secret data without authorization between Aug. 9, 2022, and Oct. 25, 2023, and failed to follow Anthem’s policies and procedures.

He was accused of receiving company information from his brother, Jason, “who at the time was an Anthem employee; Jason did not have authorization to use or download” the information to outside parties, the order said.

In addition, Alan Sword used “unapproved” marketing materials in his sales presentations.

“The Department has serious consumer protection concerns regarding [Alan Sword’s] competence and trustworthiness,” Joseph Bossinger, an attorney in the insurance department’s enforcement division, wrote in a Jan. 30 document.

Alan Sword did not immediately return two phone calls Tuesday to his brokerage in Memphis, Indiana, about 20 miles north of Louisville.

Jason Sword left Anthem this month, according to his LinkedIn page. IBJ was unable to reach him for comment.

A spokesman for Indianapolis-based Elevance Health Inc., parent of Anthem Blue Cross Blue Shield, did not immediately confirm whether Jason and Alan Sword had been separated from the companies. The insurance department’s order said that Alan Sword’s appointment as a broker for Anthem was terminated in December.