Description: The Society is taking a hard look at its members’ needs and our future as a profession. Two recent studies have focused attention on the building of our future: Report of the Task Force on the Future of the Actuary and Report of the Task Force on Strengthening the Profession. Both reports discuss the importance of our profession in health care matters. But, neither report is designed to address the practical issues involved with building toward our future in health care.

Description: With improved global mortality confirmed, the question becomes: What adjustments do actuaries need to make? This article answers that and other questions related to mortality improvements.

Description: The SOA's health leadership met earlier this year for an all day meeting in New York. A significant portion of that meeting was spent discussing current challenges facing the U.S. health care system and how the SOA can best serve its members by addressing top priority issues. This article from The Actuary outlines four particular issues.

Description: This article reports on the unveiling of a revitalized 'brand' for actuaries revealed at the recent SOA Annual Meeting including the speech by past president Bob Beuerlein and other activities throughout the meeting. The new tagline 'Risk is Opportunity' was introduced and embraced by the members.

Description: The author chronicles the history of the actuarial profession and actuarial organizations around the world and discusses how globalization affects the actuarial profession today.

Description: The risk/delivery/protection framework was first presented to participants in the SOA's Long-Term Care Think Tank seminar in a survey. That survey was designed to get participant opinions on how the system might evolve over the next five to 10 years. The results of the survey are summarized in the article.

Description: This article discusses the changes to the Social Security System that were enacted at mid-year 1972 in Public Law 92-336. Among the changes are the so-called 'automatic' provisions,' under which Social Security benefits are periodically increased in step with the Consumer Price Index, and the earnings base is concurrently increased in step with average earnings levels.

Description: The purpose of this delightful and stimulating book is the identification of new products for the marketplace. Anyone interested in predicting the future should read it. The book surveys the batting average of futurists, which IS amazingly low. About 20 years ago, Herman Kahn predicted 100 changes that would occur by the end of the century.

Description: An article that addresses the question: Do actuaries, the experts in future cost analysis, have a public responsibility to independently study the adequacy and costs of health care proposals?

Description: This is an article by outgoing Society of Actuaries President, Bruce D. Schobel, reflecting on the Society's accomplishments over the past year and looking ahead at its future plans.