Description: Part II of a two-part series discussing individual market evolution from before the ACA through President Trump's first term.

Description: In this article, we will describe EY’s five-pillar approach that balances practicality with comprehensiveness, and how this applies to LTC model validation.

Description: Derives appropriate hedge ratios for CPPI strategies, taking into account discrete hedge times and market dislocations (gap risk).

Description: A brief description of current events and techniques that may impact trend models.

Description: This article describes changes to financial reporting for variable annuities under US GAAP, IFRS and Statutory regulations, and implications for hedging.

Description: Describes a process for identifying relevant industry experience to credibility-weight with relevant company experience to set modeling assumptions and margins.

Description: Describes a process for identifying relevant industry experience to credibility-weight with relevant company experience to set modeling assumptions and margins.

Description: Recaps the evolution of VA products and hedging programs. Reflects on strategic considerations that contributed to relative performance in this market.

Description: Models are useful in illustrating various facets of complex phenomena, but they are inherently limited.

Description: The article discusses the sustainability of the ACA individual market from a public entitlement standpoint. A key point of measuring sustainability is the reliance on market forces rather than federal budget constraints. The article explains why an actuarial viewpoint of sustainability is necessary to a greater extent than other public assistance and social insurance programs. The article challenges actuaries to be a bold, objective voice in a space that is full of opinionated but often uninformed viewpoints.

Description: Reviews basic desirable features in an economic scenario generator. Discusses basics of model structure and validation process

Description: Explains the method used to calculate Liquidity Cost Score and Price Impact Score. Describes the rationale for and applications of these methods.

Description: New Zealand is about to launch its first variable annuity with guaranteed lifetime withdrawal benefits. The product design is mindful of the lessons from the financial crisis in the United States, Europe and Japan.

Description: Essential Health Benefits and Actuarial Value

Description: Feature article describing the events of the Valuation Actuary Symposium in Indianapolis, In.

Description: This scorecard will keep section members informed about research projects sponsored or co-sponsored by the section.

Description: Interview with Peter Schaefer, CEO of Hannover Life Reassurance Company of America.

Description: Research is a primary mission of the Financial Reporting Section and is the largest use of section dues. This scorecard will keep section members informed about research projects sponsored or co-sponsored by the section.

Description: The article is a case study of various actuarial concepts invovled in the design and implementtion of the AQC - a global budget provider payment arrangement implemented by Blue Cross Blue Shield of MA.

Description: This scorecard informs section members about research projects in progress and recently completed that are sponsored or co-sponsored by the section.

Description: Considerations when developing internal models for use in Solvency II.

Description: Information regarding the Economic Scenario Generator to be used when calculating Principle-based reserves and implementing VM20.

Description: The different broad purposes served by the material change concept under federal tax law are outlined. More specific material change and similar issues that are pertinent to particular Code provisions and guidance from the IRS that has addressed those issues are also addressed. In the final part of this article, authors comment on whether any overarching principles can be gleaned that can assist insurers and policy owners in making decisions about whether particular changes can safely be made, and thoughts are offered with respect to future potential IRS guidance that would be helpful as taxpayers navigate these often uncertain waters.

Description: This is an in-depth look at the root causes of the subprime mortgage crisis and ways actuaries can eliminate the problems. From the Actuary Magazine, April/May 2010 – Volume 7 Issue 2.

Description: Discussion of China’s reinsurance industry.

Description: This article discusses the current status of the statutory move towards principle-based reserves, including implications for small insurance companies, noting that the outcome is certainly unclear.

Description: This 2008 article discusses the current status of the statutory principle-based approach PBA to reserves and capital, including risk based capital RBC, federal income tax implications, and other topics, noting that the project is “still a work in process.”

Description: Author discusses the treatment of current life insurance reserves under the tax code in determining a life insurer's taxable income, and what challenges are ahead in the era of principles-based reserves.

Description: Appendix to the Critical Review of Stochastic Simulation Literature and Applications for Health Actuaries. The Development of a Simulation Model of Primary Prevention Strategies for Coronary Heart Disease

Description: ongoing discussion of the proper interest rate to use in discounting liability cash flows to reflect credit risk of the insurer in a fair value accounting system

Description: The SOA’s Committee on Finance Research recently made available the results of a research study that explores economic series and provides an Excel-based tool for generating future economic scenarios. From Risks and Rewards Newsletter, August 2005, Issue No. 47.

Description: Are Your Scenarios on Target?From Risks and Rewards Newsletter, August 2005, Issue No. 47. Actuaries are faced with the dilemma of how to incorporate advances in insurance products and modeling technology into their work. Increasingly, this means looking at a large number of potential outcomes using stochastic simulations.

Description: Discussion regarding who's to blame for cost increase, Government's role to ensure coverage and keep costs down, steps to control costs, plan design changes. Issue No. 47.

Description: An Overview of Stochastic Simulation modeling techniques and usages

Description: This study was sponsored by the Society of Actuaries Health Section. This paper explores the relative significance of aging as a determinant of financial cost of health care beyond age 50, with particular attention to the effect for ages 65 and older. The paper presents concepts of aging factors and aging curves, which define relative values between ages for utilization or cost of health care services. General conclusions are drawn from Medicare data that utilization and cost differ by age, but that aging factors vary across services and may be less significant at very old ages. The author then turns to the question of measuring the significance of an aging curve assumption and what accuracy is lost in the simpler alternative of a single value across an age range.

Description: There is a wide range of literature on aging and health care. We sample this literature and find it fits into the subcategories of theoretical aging, medical significance of aging, treatment of the elderly, and resource allocation to the elderly. Themes are that financial arrangements can cause inefficient and ineffective care and that care guidelines need to developed specifically for the elderly rather than extrapolating guidelines for younger patients.

Description: Reflections of a Regulatory Actuary by Larry Gorski

Description: The author notes that “current market value is highly relevant, but its accuracy is limited. Historical accounting, on the other hand, is highly accurate, but is of little relevance.” The article then goes on to discuss two leading methods for performing fair valuation of liabilities: the actuarial appraisal method and the option pricing method, and how they can be reconciled.

Description: This analysis provides an overview of the functional components of the managed care system. It discusses the market forces underlying the United States’ system for health care financing and delivery and suggests how market forces impact the health care industry. The analysis focuses on societal goals for health care delivery and on managed care’s effectiveness in enabling achievement of those goals. The analysis develops and uses an innovative model developed to summarize the complex interplay among the many stakeholders, or participants, in the health care system. The model provides a framework for analysis of the many relationships among stakeholders. The analysis also highlights current issues in managed care, particularly the barriers that impede collaboration among stakeholders.

Description: Panelists discuss the methods HMOs employ to measure their providers' quality of care, outcomes, compliance with best practice guidelines, and cost control. From the Record of the Society of Actuaries, Vol. 25, No. 2.

Description: Panelists report on the status of activities by national associations in regard to risk-based capital requirements for health insurers. From the Record of the Society of Actuaries, Vol. 24, No. 2.

Description: Panelists discuss the role of the valuation actuary in health insurance. From the Record of the Society of Actuaries, Vol. 24, No. 2.

Description: This article is about the Course 8 series. Course 8 provides candidates with essential advanced specialized education in one of seven practice areas: individual insurance, group life and health, managed care, U.S. pensions, Canadian pensions, finance, and investments.

Description: The U.S. actuarial profession is debating whether to introduce Dynamic Solvency Testing DST in the United States and what role it should take in the regulatory process. This article offers some insight into how the DST has fared in Canada, what issues have emerged since it was introduced, and how the DST will evolve differently in the United States.

Description: Discusses the financial impact upon the medical plans for group policyholders, caused by the requirement to continue within the group plan employees and their dependents who become ineligible under the regular eligibility provisions.

Description: In this paper, chapter III of the 1987 Valuation Actuary Handbook, the authors discuss building a liability model to evaluate the C-3 risk. The article discusses the data and assumptions needed, and the importance of sensitivity testing given that the model results are very sensitive to the assumptions used.

Description: This paper was published as chapter II of the 1987 Valuation Actuary Handbook. The authors discuss basic tools for analyzing cash flows, including duration, scenario testing and accumulation vs. present value approach. Discounting of cash flows is discussed including the limitations of using a level interest rate. The final section discusses discounting of interest sensitive cash flows, including a discussion of the disadvantages and advantages of duration analysis. The paper concludes that “duration analysis cannot replace traditional simulations analysis but should be seen by the valuation actuary as a valuable adjunct.”

Description: This is the first of two articles discussing the model laws governing minimum reserves and non-forfeiture values that the NAIC adopted in December 1980. The author, Chairman of the NAIC Technical Task Force on Valuation and Nonforfeiture Value Regulation, in this first article describes the objectives of the revision, which include updating assumptions, increasing flexibility, and improving the ability to deal with new types of products, the cooperative effort entailed, the actuary’s role and responsibilities in doing business under the new law, and the financial impact.

Description: This is a transcript of a session at the Spring 1975 Meeting in New York and discussed the impact of economic conditions on current pension plan design, funding indexed benefits, investment of pension funds, actuarial responsibilities under ERISA and future outlook. 1975 Record, Vol.1, No.2

Description: Actuaries have been indebted to the Statistical Bureau of the Metropolitan Life for studies in vital statistics associated with the names of Dublin, Lew and Spiegelman and a recent study by Quint and Cody is in this tradition. It is headed Preeminence and Mortality and was presented to the Annual Meeting of the American Public Health Association last November. This article shares further perspectives about longevity, and the characteristics of people who experience long lives.