Description: Actuaries have the business acumen, problem-solving capabilities, and technical skills to develop innovative and data-driven solutions in the social insurance space. It is time we expand our scope and embrace an increased role in making a positive impact within the health care ecosystem. The primary focus of this paper is on social insurance programs dedicated to the most vulnerable population: low-income families accessing care through Medicaid. While there are numerous challenges that require other subject matter experts to take the lead, this article highlights topics where actuaries can be key players in developing and implementing tangible solutions to improve the care for the most vulnerable. Issues and solutions in this paper focus on the following three areas: 1. Access to appropriate care, 2. continuity of care, and 3. social determinants of health.

Description: Social Insurance & Public Finance Section council members provide a recap of sessions from the 2021 SOA Health Meeting, with a focus on sessions covering Medicare, Medicaid, the ACA, and public policy. The authors include a description of SIPF Section-sponsored sections, including a session on the ACA and a session on CMS's Direct Contracting Model.

Description: A discussion of the impact of the June, 2012 U.S. Supreme Court decision on Medicaid expansion and the financial impications for states.

Description: The article describes the sessions that the SIPF section sponsored - Paid Family Leave and Medicare and Medicaid Update. The Paid Family Leave session described what it is and what states it is currently in and how it is being implemented. The Medicare and Medicaid update gave the attendees the most up to date news about what is going on at the Federal level.

Description: State Medicaid agencies have been implementing value-based payment (VBP) models for the last decade and are increasingly exploring advanced population-based payment (PBP) models that increase flexibility, predictability, and accountability for participating provider organizations. PBP models show promise in advancing Medicaid priorities, but are still in the early stages of development, and model design and implementation challenges remain. This article from the Center for Health Care Strategies explores the fundamentals of VBP and how PBP - a particular type of payment model - can help Medicaid agencies achieve goals related to care transformation and quality improvement, revenue stability, and controlling cost of care.

Description: June 2013 issue of the Social Insurance & Public Finance Section newsletter, In The Public Interest.

Description: Beneficiaries who are eligible for both Medicare and Medicaid often have complex health needs. The two programs have not typically been well integrated and care can become uncoordinated, fragmented and incomplete. The ACA includes provisions to address the shortcomings.

Description: Chairperson's corner for January 2020 In the Public Interest.

Description: Coverage of Medicaid home and community-based services under the 1915(i) state plan option: Attractive features and important considerations

Description: During the SOA’s recent Living to 100 Symposium, one of the sessions that got me thinking much more deeply about the financing of public retirement plans was titled “Mortality Age Patterns: Trends and Projections.”