State Insurance Department officials will soon begin requiring life insurance companies to take into account whether variable annuities are suitable for the clients who they sell them to. The Department’s Consumer Affairs Director, Mary Kempker, says the new regulations will align Missouri with national regulations under the National Association of Security Dealers. Kempker says suitability is the key. Too often, variable annuities have been sold to the elderly, generally a segment of the population that shouldn’t invest in them. Variable annuities invest in the stock market and, often, require steep penalities for early withdrawal. The elderly typically should have their money in safe investments that can be tapped into without penalty. Missourians invested nearly $2-Billion in variable annuities last year.