Description: The essay discusses the appropriate role of insurance companies, efficient and economical ways to care for chronic illnesses and having a maximum price society will pay to support the ongoing life of any one individual.

Description: A glossary of terms.

Description: Essay suggests reforms of the U.S. health care system to promote financial soundness, broader access, and efficient operations. These reforms require that each participant in the system – individuals, employers, providers, insurers, and government – give a little.

Description: This paper provides an outline of three potential initiatives that may be undertaken by the government and the private sector. The first initiative aims at reducing the cost of health care at the provider level. The second initiative provides a means to improve the quality of health care. The third initiative creates a constructive basis for identifying medical best practices to enhance quality.

Description: This paper offers basic, economic and actuarial ideas to improve the balance of cost, access to treatment and quality over time.

Description: This essay discusses the long overdue effciencies that would improve the quality of healthcare in the United States.

Description: Actuaries should understand the economic considerations involved in the formulary drug decision-making process, and the presence of actuarial input in the process could improve it, especially by tying it to overall decision making for the health plan. From Prescription Drugs Monograph, M-HB04-1.

Description: This essay highlights that the healthcare of the future should offer unversal coverage, preserve competitiveness, research cost and quality and offer free or low cost preventative services.

Description: A call for essays issued by the SOA Health and Long Term Care Sections on the visions for the future of the U.S. health care system.

Description: A call for essays issued by the SOA Health and Long Term Care Sections on the visions for the future of the U.S. health care system.