Description: The article is based on a study of causes of insolvency and decisions made by management, regulators, and policyholders over the life cycle of the insolvency.

Description: Other articles that will be of interest to readers.

Description: The series finale on thinking and decision making, this article explores when actuaries should use a heuristic or systems analysis method of decision making.

Description: This article discusses the history of the Sun Life of Canada inserting a question about smoking in their life insurance applications. Actuary John M. Bragg used the Sun Life mortality ratios, supplemented by other data from life companies, from the Cancer Society, and from the U.S. Surgeon General, to construct his non-smoker and smoker mortality tables and to produce his Health Insurance Report which was the starting point for companies that have introduced smoker/nonsmoker differentials for health insurance.

Description: Many top-performing businesses aren’t just risk aware, but rather risk intelligent. Such a posture helps prepare companies for a major event and can demonstrate to a regulator or auditor that an appropriately strong control framework is in place. Better still, companies gain real strategic value from a “risk adjusted” understanding not only of their threats and vulnerabilities, but also the upside opportunities associated with various risks. It starts with having both qualitative and quantitative information to identify, assess and manage risks. Strategic risk management, at its core, is about creating value by increasing transparency and accountability, and quality of information. More than a mere compliance exercise, effective risk management enables more informed strategic decision making, increased accountability and transparency, a greater likelihood of organizational success, and – ultimately – competitive advantage, as borne out by many studies that correlate risk management and financial results.

Description: Article Description * “Agile” development is all the buzz in the IT world. You may have heard your IT teams talk about scrums, sprints, and the war room and wondered if they were playing a strange new sport. Or perhaps you are already applying agile techniques in your product development. This article will discuss what agile methodology is, pros and cons, and how you might apply it to insurance product development.

Description: Career planning

Description: Part 1 of a 2-part series exploring implementation issues for the Mental Health Parity and Addiction Equity Act of 2008 MHPAEA. Part 2 addresses the new enforcement safe harbor, how the regulations could impact the business of behavioral health care and the impending decisions for payors, employers, providers, and insureds.

Description: The article focuses on some of the major challenges and considerations an insurance carrier faces with pricing, management, and administration of LTC Combo Products.