The declarations would cover a range of issues, including non-renewals, cancellations, premium increases, adjusting claims and other matters. Mr. Wooley anticipated this would be the first of a number of meetings, but he plans to issue the emergency declarations by the end of next week.

The other aim of the meeting was to begin a dialogue on some of the issues insurers and policyholders are sure to face, including claim questions concerning wind versus flood damage, he said.

Mr. Wooley noted such issues will inevitably have to be dealt with on a case by case basis and there "cannot be a blanket statement to cover all situations."

He commended those insurers who have voluntarily taken the initiative and provided added living expenses under homeowners policies for policyholders forced out of their homes by Katrina.

Another issue facing the industry is dealing with policyholders who know their agent but not the company they are insured with. He said the insurance department in each state with displaced citizens is helping to provide contact information for the insurance industry, the Federal Emergency Management Administration, and the National Flood Insurance Program. The representatives will also assist in helping policyholders make contacts.

The declarations, Mr. Wooley noted, would include a moratorium on the cancellations of policies going back to Aug. 26, when a state of emergency was declared to "give all people time to recover." He noted that the displaced have been unable to get their mail and have yet to make address changes while they re-settle.

The declaration would also order health care insurance providers to honor their network plans out-of-state, he said, adding that many hospitals affected by the storm are not operational.

"We have to give our citizens a way to access normal health care without added cost," he added.

The commissioners are also seeking to make the claims adjustment process more efficient by requiring one adjuster go to a site and do all of the reporting on a claim instead of multiple insurers going and assessing the same risk for different insurers, he said.

Mr. Wooley said lessons were learned from the implementation of similar declarations in Florida, and the aim of the discussion was to take the lessons from that experience and improve the process this time around.

"We are going to be responsible, as we always are," said Mr. Wooley. "We are going to be methodical. We are going to protect the consumers, but we are going to also work with the industry and try to be a resource and be part of the solution and not part of the problem."

For the industry's part, Greg Lacoft, senior council and regional manager for Louisiana for the Property Casualty Insurers Association of America, said it was a very positive meeting. It shows the industry is reaching out to pool resources and come together in the wake of this "unprecedented" event, he said.