Dividend Payment Restrictions [Text Block]

12 Months Ended

Dec. 31, 2018

Notes

Dividend Payment Restrictions

Note 16.Dividend Payment Restrictions and Statutory Information 

Our insurance subsidiaries are restricted by state laws and regulations as to the amount of dividends they may pay to their parent without regulatory approval in any year. Any dividends in excess of limits are deemed “extraordinary” and require approval. Based on statutory results as of December 31, 2018, in accordance with applicable dividend restrictions, our insurance subsidiaries could pay dividends of approximately $41,275,000 in 2019 without obtaining regulatory approval. There are no regulatory restrictions on the ability of our holding company, IHC, to pay dividends. Under Delaware law, IHC is permitted to pay dividends from surplus or net profits for the fiscal year in which the dividend is declared and/or the preceding fiscal year. Dividends to shareholders are paid from funds available at the corporate holding company level.

Non-“extraordinary” dividend payments were as follows:  (i) Madison National Life declared and paid cash dividends of $12,035,000 and $11,000,000 to its parent in 2018 and 2017, respectively; (ii) Standard Security Life declared and paid dividends of $3,000,000 and $7,000,000 to its parent in 2018, and 2017, respectively; and (iii) Independence American declared and paid $8,400,000 dividends to its parent in 2018 and $0 in 2017. IHC declared cash dividends of $4,468,000 in 2018 and $2,392,000 in 2017.

The Company’s insurance subsidiaries are required to prepare statutory financial statements in accordance with statutory accounting practices prescribed or permitted by the insurance department of their state of domicile. Statutory accounting practices differ from U.S. GAAP in several respects causing differences in reported net income and stockholder’s equity. The Company’s insurance subsidiaries have no permitted accounting practices, which encompass all accounting practices not so prescribed that have been specifically allowed by the state insurance authorities.

The statutory net income and statutory capital and surplus for each of the Company’s insurance subsidiaries are as follows for the periods indicated (in thousands):

		Years Ended December 31,
		2018		2017
Statutory net income:
Madison National Life	$	16,050	$	12,794
Standard Security Life		8,291		3,555
Independence American		18,015		8,728

		December 31,
		2018		2017
Statutory capital and surplus:
Madison National Life	$	196,031	$	179,648
Standard Security Life		70,792		65,600
Independence American		82,986		72,083

The insurance subsidiaries are also required to maintain certain minimum amounts of statutory surplus to satisfy their various state insurance departments of domicile. Risk-based capital (“RBC”) requirements are designed to assess capital adequacy and to raise the level of protection that statutory surplus provides for policyholders. At December 31, 2018 and 2017, the statutory capital of our insurance subsidiaries is significantly in excess of their regulatory RBC requirements.