Description: The mismatch between how interest rate impacts the value of assets and liabilities could have material negative impact to companies’ earnings and surplus. To quantify and mitigate the impact of such mismatches, companies have used matching a combination of duration and convexity. I will review these measurement techniques and their limitations.

Description: The article provides an overview of the federal tax treatment of long-term care insurance contracts, including a brief history of the tax treatment of long-term care insurance, the requirements that must be satisfied in order to be treated as qualified long-term care insurance under the Internal Revenue Code, and a brief discussion of qualified long-term care combination products and chronic and terminal illness accelerated death benefits offered under life insurance contracts.

Description: To inform and educate stakeholders for health plans and insurers on novel ways to optimize reinsurance structures to meet capital related goals and boost RBC and liquidity ratios. In lieu of traditional market-based financial instruments involving equity and/or debt, a quota share transaction can be used with potentially far more attractive terms and achieving essentially the same result.

Description: This article discusses Jed Frees’ book in progress, “Regression Modeling with Actuarial and Financial Applications” which offers a synthesized introduction to regression and time series.

Description: A solicitation for letters to the editor of Expanding Horizons.

Description: This article discusses the use of product databases to increase response rates from direct mail campaigns. The concept includes renting name lists for a year, appending demographic information, and using a model to better target prospects.

Description: A focus on the capital markets perspective and some of the products dealers offer to hedge and help mitigate capital costs and tail exposure risks. From The Actuary Magazine, April/May 2005

Description: Discusses the growing and evolving field of pricing and valuing stock option plans, and makes the case that actuaries are the professionals best qualified to serve clients in the field.

Description: Non-actuary discusses how studying for the ASA exams has helped him to excel in his field.

Description: CBS has a new show in its lineup about an FBI agent who recruits his mathematical genius brother to help him fight crime. The show is called Numbers and although most things on TV don't really capture my imagination, I do enjoy this one. For one thing it gives my teenage daughters a point of reference with their friends. "Yes, my dad is an actuary. He's kind of like that crazy guy on numbers, saving the world, one math problem at a time." From The Actuary Magazine April 2006