Description: This article is intended to inform readers about the current state of mental health and health care in the US, as were it's heading moving forward.

Description: In 2022, the Society of Actuaries (SOA) Research Institute Committee on Finance Research (CFR) of the Investment Section in collaboration with the SOA Research Institute Catastrophic and Climate Strategic Research Program, published a research report on the impact of disaster events on investments. The report, The Impact of Disaster Events on Investment-Contagion Channels Perspective, which explored this issue from the perspective of contagion channels, provided a framework for further investigation. As a next step, CFR is seeking essays on how the concepts in the report and related studies may be practically applied in specific situations and recent experiences.

Description: The actuarial profession and our stakeholders in the insurance industry are in a unique position to help quantify and mitigate environmental risks via pricing and benefit incentives. Property insurance prices and benefits can encourage responsible and sustainable development. By developing insurance markets and making various types of insurance available in developing regions, which are disproportionately affected by environmental risks and hazards, we can provide protection that is critical for economic development. In spite of the risks posed by environmental issues to actuaries and our stakeholders, and in spite of the opportunities for actuaries and our stakeholders to address environmental risks, actuarial literature is limited with respect to such topics as: environmental risks, including natural disasters, pollution, clean air and water, degradation of the natural and human environment, resource depletion and sustainability, climate change and its consequences; local, national, regional and global efforts to address environmental risks; methods and models used by the scientific community to study environmental risks; methods and assumptions used to quantify the economic or financial risk associated with environmental hazards. This webcast will feature three of the papers addressing these topics that have been published so far in this series of twelve papers. The authors of the papers will present their topics and attendees will be able to participate with questions and answers.

Description: As results emerged showing the influence of COVID-19 on recent mortality, the Society of Actuaries Research Institute’s Mortality and Longevity Strategic Research Program Steering Committee (MLPSC) began to ponder what it means for the future. Was the coronavirus pandemic just a temporary shock to U.S. mortality with mortality quickly returning to prepandemic levels upon its conclusion or a lingering factor in future U.S. mortality from the potential occurrence of new coronavirus variants, post-COVID-19 conditions (“long COVID”), deferral of needed health care treatment, a fatigued health care system and other elements? Only time will provide the answers to these questions.

Description: President's Remarks/Panel Discussion on Working Remotely SOA President Roy Goldman, Ph.D., FSA, MAAA, CERA, will discuss the latest updates on the SOA’s Long-Term Growth Strategy. A panel of actuaries will share experiences, key learnings and insights on adapting to the remote work life during the pandemic.

Description: The average person spends from one third to one half of every waking hour thinking about the past or present. We talk to ourselves when we do. Psychologists have identified three steps you can take to make your self-talk more positive. This will make you happier and better able to achieve the goals you set at home and at work.

Description: Current tax issues affecting the insurance industry, including the Inflation Reduction Act (Budget Reconciliation Bill)'s tax provisions, including the corporate minimum book income tax and share repurchase (or stock buyback) excise tax; the tax treatment of non coordinated benefits (also known as fixed indemnity benefits); and an update on the OECD’s Base Erosion and Profit Shifting Project

Description: Eager to learn more about what an InsurTech is, how they operate in the insurance ecosystem and how actuaries can participate in this ecosystem? Join actuaries, InsurTechs and participants in the ecosystem to discuss the recent research report on InsurTechs by the SOA. At the conclusion of the session, attendees will be able to: • Know more about InsurTechs and how they operate • Understand how insurers work with InsurTechs • Discover how actuaries can participate in this ecosystem • Learn practical lessons from both InsurTechs and actuaries This session is presented by the Entrepreneurial & Innovation Section.

Description: This is an article by outgoing Society of Actuaries President, Bruce D. Schobel, reflecting on the Society's accomplishments over the past year and looking ahead at its future plans.

Description: Roy Ju is a 20-year-old junior at Drake University. On August 26, 2015, he received the Fellow of Society of Actuaries (FSA) designation from Society of Actuaries (SOA) and has become the youngest actuary ever in the SOA’s history.