Accounting Changes	9 Months Ended
Sep. 30, 2016
Accounting Changes	(2) Accounting Changes Accounting Pronouncement Recently Adopted On January 1, 2016, we adopted new accounting guidance related to consolidation. The new guidance primarily impacts limited partnerships and similar legal entities, evaluation of fees paid to a decision maker as a variable interest, the effect of fee arrangements and related parties on the primary beneficiary determination and certain investment funds. The adoption of this new guidance did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements. Accounting Pronouncements Not Yet Adopted In September 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (the “FASB”) issued new guidance related to the statement of cash flows classification of certain cash payments and cash receipts. The guidance will reduce diversity in practice related to eight specific cash flow issues. The new guidance is effective for us on January 1, 2018, with early adoption permitted. We are in the process of determining the impact from this guidance on our consolidated financial statements. In June 2016, the FASB issued new guidance related to accounting for credit losses on financial instruments. The guidance requires that entities recognize an allowance equal to its estimate of lifetime expected credit losses and applies to most debt instruments not measured at fair value, which would primarily include our commercial mortgage loans and reinsurance receivables. The new guidance retains most of the existing impairment guidance for available-for-sale debt securities but amends the presentation of credit losses to be presented as an allowance as opposed to a write-down and permits the reversal of credit losses when reassessing changes in the credit losses each reporting period. The new guidance is effective for us on January 1, 2020, with early adoption permitted beginning January 1, 2019. Upon adoption, a cumulative effect adjustment in retained earnings as of the beginning of the year of adoption will be recorded. We are in the process of determining the impact from this guidance on our consolidated financial statements. In March 2016, the FASB issued new accounting guidance related to the accounting for stock compensation. The guidance primarily simplifies the accounting for employee share-based payment transactions, including a new requirement to record all of the income tax effects at settlement or expiration through the income statement, classification of awards as either equity or liabilities, and classification on the statement of cash flows. The guidance is effective for us on January 1, 2017, with early adoption permitted. We are in the process of determining the impact from this guidance on our consolidated financial statements. In March 2016, the FASB issued new accounting guidance related to transition to the equity method of accounting. The guidance eliminates the retrospective application of the equity method of accounting when obtaining significant influence over a previously held investment. The guidance requires that an entity that has an available-for-sale equity security that becomes qualified for the equity method of accounting recognize through earnings the unrealized holding gain or loss in accumulated other comprehensive income at the date the investment becomes qualified for use of the equity method. The guidance is effective for us on January 1, 2017, with early adoption permitted. We do not expect any significant impact from this guidance on our consolidated financial statements. In March 2016, the FASB issued new accounting guidance related to the assessment of contingent put and call options in debt instruments. The guidance clarifies the requirements for assessing whether contingent call (put) options that can accelerate the payment of principal on debt instruments are clearly and closely related to their debt hosts. An entity performing the assessment under the amendments in this update is required to assess the embedded call (put) options solely in accordance with the four-step decision sequence. The guidance is effective for us on January 1, 2017, with early adoption permitted. We are in the process of determining the impact from this guidance on our consolidated financial statements. In March 2016, the FASB issued new accounting guidance related to the effect of derivative contract novations on existing hedge accounting relationships. The guidance clarifies that a change in the counterparty to a derivative instrument that has been designated as the hedging instrument does not, in and of itself, require dedesignation of that hedging relationship provided that all other hedge accounting criteria continue to be met. The guidance is effective for us on January 1, 2017, with early adoption permitted. This guidance is consistent with our accounting for derivative contract novations and, accordingly, we do not expect any impact on our consolidated financial statements. In February 2016, the FASB issued new accounting guidance related to the accounting for leases. The new guidance generally requires lessees to recognize both a right-to-use asset and a corresponding liability on the balance sheet. The guidance is effective for us on January 1, 2019, with early adoption permitted. We are still in the process of evaluating the impact this guidance will have on our consolidated financial statements.

(2) Accounting Changes

Accounting Pronouncement Recently Adopted

On January 1, 2016, we adopted new accounting guidance related to consolidation. The new guidance primarily impacts limited partnerships and similar legal entities, evaluation of fees paid to a decision maker as a variable interest, the effect of fee arrangements and related parties on the primary beneficiary determination and certain investment funds. The adoption of this new guidance did not have a material impact on our consolidated financial statements.

Accounting Pronouncements Not Yet Adopted

In September 2016, the Financial Accounting Standards Board (the “FASB”) issued new guidance related to the statement of cash flows classification of certain cash payments and cash receipts. The guidance will reduce diversity in practice related to eight specific cash flow issues. The new guidance is effective for us on January 1, 2018, with early adoption permitted. We are in the process of determining the impact from this guidance on our consolidated financial statements.

In June 2016, the FASB issued new guidance related to accounting for credit losses on financial instruments. The guidance requires that entities recognize an allowance equal to its estimate of lifetime expected credit losses and applies to most debt instruments not measured at fair value, which would primarily include our commercial mortgage loans and reinsurance receivables. The new guidance retains most of the existing impairment guidance for available-for-sale debt securities but amends the presentation of credit losses to be presented as an allowance as opposed to a write-down and permits the reversal of credit losses when reassessing changes in the credit losses each reporting period. The new guidance is effective for us on January 1, 2020, with early adoption permitted beginning January 1, 2019. Upon adoption, a cumulative effect adjustment in retained earnings as of the beginning of the year of adoption will be recorded. We are in the process of determining the impact from this guidance on our consolidated financial statements.

In March 2016, the FASB issued new accounting guidance related to the accounting for stock compensation. The guidance primarily simplifies the accounting for employee share-based payment transactions, including a new requirement to record all of the income tax effects at settlement or expiration through the income statement, classification of awards as either equity or liabilities, and classification on the statement of cash flows. The guidance is effective for us on January 1, 2017, with early adoption permitted. We are in the process of determining the impact from this guidance on our consolidated financial statements.

In March 2016, the FASB issued new accounting guidance related to transition to the equity method of accounting. The guidance eliminates the retrospective application of the equity method of accounting when obtaining significant influence over a previously held investment. The guidance requires that an entity that has an available-for-sale equity security that becomes qualified for the equity method of accounting recognize through earnings the unrealized holding gain or loss in accumulated other comprehensive income at the date the investment becomes qualified for use of the equity method. The guidance is effective for us on January 1, 2017, with early adoption permitted. We do not expect any significant impact from this guidance on our consolidated financial statements.

In March 2016, the FASB issued new accounting guidance related to the assessment of contingent put and call options in debt instruments. The guidance clarifies the requirements for assessing whether contingent call (put) options that can accelerate the payment of principal on debt instruments are clearly and closely related to their debt hosts. An entity performing the assessment under the amendments in this update is required to assess the embedded call (put) options solely in accordance with the four-step decision sequence. The guidance is effective for us on January 1, 2017, with early adoption permitted. We are in the process of determining the impact from this guidance on our consolidated financial statements.

In March 2016, the FASB issued new accounting guidance related to the effect of derivative contract novations on existing hedge accounting relationships. The guidance clarifies that a change in the counterparty to a derivative instrument that has been designated as the hedging instrument does not, in and of itself, require dedesignation of that hedging relationship provided that all other hedge accounting criteria continue to be met. The guidance is effective for us on January 1, 2017, with early adoption permitted. This guidance is consistent with our accounting for derivative contract novations and, accordingly, we do not expect any impact on our consolidated financial statements.

In February 2016, the FASB issued new accounting guidance related to the accounting for leases. The new guidance generally requires lessees to recognize both a right-to-use asset and a corresponding liability on the balance sheet. The guidance is effective for us on January 1, 2019, with early adoption permitted. We are still in the process of evaluating the impact this guidance will have on our consolidated financial statements.