Description: Actuaries have been thinking about how to improve North American retirement systems in big and small ways for a number of years. This web page contains Bob Berin’s thoughts on this topic from the September 1990 Pension Section News, followed by Cindy Levering’s update on the Retirement 20/20 initiative.

Description: A January 25, 2015 ruling by the US Supreme Court regarding retiree health benefits is the topical springboard for the author to discuss the history and future of retiree health benefits. Topics include actuarial valuation of uncertain benefits using discount rates with risk adjustments derived from equity investment markets.

Description: Since the early 1990's, interest rates in the U.S. economy have been declining, thus increasing the liabilities of defined benefit pension plans. Furthermore, after the bull market of the 1990's with its unprecedented returns, the market came to a crashing halt in 2000. Since then, the majority of defined benefit plans have experienced three years of negative returns with some losing more than 40 percent of their value. Analysts have been referring to this combination of declining interest rates and negative investment returns as a 'perfect storm' leading to a pension crisis. This paper discusses how plan sponsors can effectively manage their defined benefit plans during this crisis.

Description: This article gives an overview of the recent SOA research report on the usefulness of Health Economics and Outcomes Research field in an actuarial context. A description of the structured assessment tool for evaluating new technologies is included.

Description: This article discusses the effects of economic cycles on the health insurance business.

Description: Adding value in the development, production and marketing process of medical devises regulatory environment, designer/manufacturer perspective, product failure and litigation risk. Issue No. 44.

Description: Summary of the Global Risks Report 2017, 12th Edition, published by the World Economic Forum (WEF).

Description: The Society of Actuaries´ ambassador for Argentina and regional coordinator for Latin American and Caribbean, presented the Argentinean Strategic Plan for the Insurance Industry (PlaNeS 2012–2020) at the Latin American Actuarial Conference.

Description: Discusses management principles for the successful application of the underwriting processes of selecting and classifying risks and the actuarial pricing process of establishing adequate and equitable premiums for the risks to be underwritten within group medical business. Has some nice representative data for what a book of business might look like by case size.