Description: VM-20 represents a major change in how reserves will be computed for new business, including computation of a stochastic reserve, a deterministic reserve and a Net Premium Reserve (NPR). There are optional exclusion tests which, if passed, allow companies to exclude groups of policies from the stochastic calculation and potentially from the deterministic reserve calculation. Because of the availability of the exclusion tests, some have concluded that the most likely policies to be affected by VM-20 are Universal Life with Secondary Guarantees (ULSG) and Competitive Term.

Description: A recounting of all the accomplishments the Joint Risk Management Section had in 2021 crediting those responsible for their successful completion.

Description: The Committee on Life Insurance Mortality and Underwriting Surveys of the Society of Actuaries Research Institute sent companies a survey in May of 2019 on mortality improvement practices. Note this survey was completed prior to the onset of COVID-19, so that issue was not addressed in this survey. The purpose of the survey was to examine mortality improvement practices with respect to life insurance and annuity pricing and financial projections in both the U.S. and Canada.

Description: Get access to a wide array of retirement research.

Description: We stand for respect and equality. We are committed to doing all we can to ensure that our profession reflects the diverse perspectives, cultures and backgrounds of the members and candidates.

Description: This webpage has links to materials that have been produced by the Society of Actuaries on aging and retirement issues with the goal of helping consumers more effectively understand and consider them.

Description: The direct and indirect effects of the pandemic have impacted many actuaries’ work since the spring of 2020. This article addresses three considerations actuaries should account for when using risk evaluation models which are focused on projecting remote, highly unlikely losses: model effectiveness, asset risk, and insurance (mortality and mortality) risk.

Description: The 2021 Society of Actuaries Generations Survey offers results by race and ethnicity. This article is an interview with Alan Newsome and shares the results of the survey as well as broader issues to understand the differences in retirement security by race and ethnicity. It documents that there are major differences, and that the COVID-19 pandemic affected different groups very differently. It also raises issues related to societal conditions.

Description: In the past months, as COVID-19 has forced the reduced activity in the U.S. economy there has been some very substantial, but varied effects on the U.S. healthcare system. There is a lot of potential for confusion amongst providers and patients with regards to decisions related to which services ought to be rendered and which ought to be deferred. Two specific agencies – the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS), and the American College of Surgeons (ACS) have put together some guidance to add more clarity towards what types of services should be provided and what types ought to be deferred. In addition, this paper includes a discussion on what types of services are most likely to be deferred, and which ones will accrue pent-up demand to be released when many of the deferred services become available again.

Description: The SOA Research Institute Mortality & Longevity Strategic Research Program and the Catastrophe & Climate Strategic Research Program Steering Committees [The Committees] are seeking researchers to investigate the impact of outdoor air quality and pollution on morbidity and mortality, with a focus on climate change including the impacts of wildfires focusing on regions where air quality has deteriorated significantly in recent history.