Highlights from the NAIC Fall 2025 National Meeting
January 2026
Break out the sunglasses. The Society of Actuaries (SOA) goes to Hollywood—Hollywood, Florida, that is.
In early December, a couple of members of SOA staff left behind record-breaking snow and frigid temperatures in Illinois and travelled to Florida. There they mixed and mingled with state insurance regulators, industry representatives, and other insurance experts at the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) 2025 Fall National Meeting, which was held Dec. 8 – 11.
Attendees dove into lively discussions, tackling today’s hot topics and tomorrow’s trends, sharing updates on their latest projects, and exchanging fresh ideas. In particular, R. Dale Hall, FSA, MAAA, CERA, Managing Director of the SOA Research Institute, shared research findings with the casualty, health, and life actuarial task forces, contributing valuable insights to each group.
From Data to Insight: Life and Mortality Research Update
An increasing number of U.S. companies are assuming risks underwritten and priced in international markets, and they would like to value them with mortality tables consistent with the products’ pricing. In response to this trend, Hall addressed global life experience studies with the Life Actuarial (A) Task Force (LATF) and discussed individual life mortality tables for China and Canada.
He also spotlighted the SOA/LIMRA Experience Studies Pro series and unveiled newly released studies:
Experience Study
2009-2023 Individual Life Term Conversions
2023-2024 Fixed-Rate Deferred Surrender
2022-2024 Variable Annuity Contract Holder Behavior
Extreme Weather Findings for the Insurance Industry
The SOA also participated in the Casualty Actuarial and Statistical (C) Task Force (CASTF) meeting, where valuable insights from SOA research on extreme weather events and emerging technologies were shared. The presentation explored the financial and socioeconomic impacts of climate-driven migration, evaluated potential future risks to coastal infrastructure and communities, and reviewed the effects of the 2025 Texas floods and Los Angeles wildfires. These findings provided important context for understanding how such events could influence the property insurance landscape.
Health Research Highlights Emerging Trends
Hall shared updates with the Health Actuarial (B) Task Force (HATF) on the ongoing long-term care experience study, a collaborative effort between the SOA Research Institute, NAIC, and LIMRA. This study is designed to examine policy persistency, claim incidence, termination, and utilization trends. Hall noted that 20 companies are participating, representing 84% of the industry’s lives in force. And he informed the task force that, at the time of the meeting, data had been received from 12 companies, and researchers were actively working on agreements and submissions with the remaining eight. The team had also started reviewing results for older attained ages as they validated and loaded data into a visualization tool.
He also touched on an Experience Studies Pro project the SOA Research Institute is undertaking with LIMRA, concerning group long-term disability claim termination, for which they are currently gathering data. With 95% of the industry participating, the study will be released in 2026. Hall noted the study may result in recommendations for a new group long-term disability claim valuation table.
In addition, Hall highlighted several recent health-related experience studies and practice research projects. These included analyses of the impact of wildfires on U.S. health and life insurers, the effects of HIV-positive individuals on Medicare Advantage, and innovative ways AI could be leveraged to improve both clinical and financial health care outcomes.
Other Topics: AI Tools and an RBC Framework
The Big Data and Artificial Intelligence (AI) (H) Working Group held a working session at which members responded to comments about its AI Evaluation Tool and proposed several changes as a result. A pilot of the tool will be released in early 2026. The session was well attended and generated lively discussion.
Also, the Risk-Based Capital (RBC) Model Governance (EX) Task Force adopted guiding principles for an RBC framework. In 2026, the American Academy of Actuaries and task force members and staff will conduct a forthcoming gap analysis across all three business.
Homeowners’ Insurance Initiatives and Retirement Farewells at the SOA Dinner
The SOA hosted a well-attended dinner for members that featured Jason Lapham, Colorado Deputy Commissioner for Property and Casualty Insurance, as guest speaker. He discussed initiatives in his state that address challenges with homeowners’ insurance, particularly in response to wildfires.
Also, attendees honored the work and dedication of SOA Government Affairs Legal Consultant Ann Weber, who retired at the end of 2025. Joe Wurzburger is now serving as Managing Director of Strategic Partnerships and Government Affairs. This updated title and refined role now include responsibilities for leading the SOA engagement with our key external stakeholders, including government and regulatory bodies, industry associations, and strategic employer and partner groups.
SOA Government Affairs Legal Consultant Ann Weber interviews Colorado Deputy Commissioner Jason Lapham at the SOA dinner.
For more details about the NAIC 2025 Fall National Meeting tune in to a new Research Insights Podcast with Hall and Geralyn Trujillo, Senior Director of Public Policy, American Academy of Actuaries.