Description: This paper discusses the underlying nature of the Social Security program, certain erroneous views of the program, various Advisory Council proposed solutions to the long-range financing problems, and the probability that no solution stands any chance of being enacted. From The Old-Age Crisis - Actuarial Opportunities - The 1996 Bowles Symposium, M-RS99-1.

Description: Surveys show that young people do not have confidence that Social Security will exist when they retire - a view that is supported by some official projections. Author points out some ways the funding shortfalls can be corrected to secure Social Security's future.

Description: Discussion of Eastern Europe and the former Soviet Union: Opportunities and problems for the actuarial profession and the industries it serves. The panel explored for each country: • The background and current economic situation of each country • Trends in governmental programs • Expansion of insurance markets • Development of employee benefit programs • Building the actuarial profession: education and research

Description: Presented at Annual Meeting October 1986. Discusses: Reasonableness of cost projections in the 1986 OASDI Trustees Report, Possible policy alternatives in response to the higher cost projected for years after 2020, How to reduce the variability in cost trends due to economic and demographic changes, Financing implications of differences and similarities in cost trends between Social Security pensions and private pensions, paper, 'Components of Trends in Social Security Costs' by Francisco R. Bayo, Milton P. Glanz and Charles L. Trowbridge.

Description: Presented at October 1985 Annual Meeting. Discusses fifty years of Social Security and the role of actuaries, recruitment sources and problems, remuneration, functions of actuarial staff, problems of staff retention, political pressures, opportunities to influence national legislation.

Description: This paper discusses the cause of the long-term financial problem of the Old-Age, Survivors, and Disability Insurance OASDI program, outlines an alternative actuarial financing approach for OASDI as a solution to this problem, and details the advantages of this approach over the current financing method. Followed by several discussion papers submitted

Description: The author analyzes the arguments for and against a Social Security earnings test and concludes with a recommendation the author believes is consistent with the proper purpose and nature of the old-age, survivors, and disability insurance [OASDI] system. Includes discussion and author’s review of discussion. From Transactions of Society of Actuaries 1982 Volume 34.

Description: This is a panel discussion session on social insurance topics focusing on the short and long term financing issues of Social Security, the issue of general revenue financing, and proposals to revise benefit structures. Both U.S. and Canadian systems are discussed.

Description: This paper presents multiple book reviews: Reports from Staff of U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Ways and Means and U.S. Senate Committee on Finance, Reports in Connection with Social Security Legislation 1975-77, 'Statement on Cost Comparisons of Individual Life Insurance Policies', by Canadian Institute of Actuaries, 'Investment Activities of Life Insurance Companies' from Huebner Foundation Lectures, 'The Life Insurance Industry's Marketing Dilemma' by Johns, 'The Future of Social Security' by Munnell, 'Social Security - Today and Tomorrow' by Ball, 'Mortality Table Construction' by Batten, 'Mortality Table Construction' by Batten, 'The Crisis in Social Security - Problems and Prospects' by Boskin, 'A History of Interest Rates' by Homer, 'Indexation of Pensions and Other Benefits' by Robert Myers, 'Life Insurance Accounting' by Strain, '1978 Annual Report of the Board of Trustees of the Federal Hospital Insurance Trust Fund...' by US Congress. Brief summaries of additional readings are also included.

Description: This paper discusses decoupling of social security - meaning that the coupling of actual benefits for those already beneficiaries and potential benefits for future beneficiaries be broken. The purposes are to describe the environment, the problem which decoupling addresses and the importance of a rational solution. The paper discusses the wage-indexing approach and the price-indexing approach. From Transactions of Society of Actuaries 1977, Vol. 29.

Description: This article is a review of “1972 Lifetime Earnings by Age, Sex, Race, and Education Level, Research and Statistics Note No. 14-1975,” published by the Social Security Administration, which presents detailed data by quinquennial age groups, sex, race, and years of school completed as to the present value of future earnings based on static earnings levels 1972. It is stated that such data can be used for general analytical purposes to form policy, for court determinations of awards in damage suits, and for cost-benefit analysts in such areas as disease prevention and education programs. The author of this article notes in his analysis the inconsistency of the static salary assumptions with a range of interest rates from 2% to 8%.

Description: This document is a meeting session summary. The meeting occurred at the 1976 SOA Spring Meeting in Washington D.C. The session compared and contrasted educational and experience requirements for actuaries and economists, costs of long range social insurance programs, costs of short range programs, economic analysis of the effects of social insurance programs and cooperation between the two professions to analyze social insurance programs.

Description: This discussion panel which occurred at the SOA's 1975 Bal Harbor Meeting provided a forum for discussing Social Security in the United States. The topics included solutions to financing problems, non-discrimination considerations, possible benefit changes, and the disability experience of the program.

Description: This article covers a session at the 1975 Spring Cincinnati Joint Meeting of the Conference of Actuaries in Public Practice and Society of Actuaries. It addresses the following issues: how the Social Security system reached its present situation with respect to benefit levels and actuarial status, the problems in Social Security funding and with the Social Security system, the prospects for the Railroad Retirement system and the future of Social Security. 1975 Record Vol.1, No.3

Description: The following topics were discussed at concurrent sessions: 1. Personal Security in the 1970's- United States and Canada, 2. Adjusted earnings for life companies, 3. Pension funding, 4. What about these younger actuaries?, 5. Sources of statistical information for actuaries, 6. Variable life insurance, 7. Models and decision techniques, and 8. Role of the actuary in expense control. From Transactions of Society of Actuaries 1970, Vol 22, Pt. 2, No. 63.

Description: This note compares hospital utilization and average daily hospital costs for persons aged 65 and over as indicated by 1968 data under Medicare's Hospital Insurance Program and from the American Hospital Association.

Description: The following topics were discussed at concurrent sessions: 1. Pension benefit security bill, 2. Variable insurance products, 3. Trends in hospital and medical care utilization, 4. Insurance distribution and marketing systems, 5. Deferred and incentive compensation, 6. Annual Statement accounting, 7. Social Security and employee benefits in western Europe, 8. Individual medical expense insurance, 9. Reserves and related problems for variable annuities and cost-of-living benefits, 10. Topics for consulting actuaries, 11. Profit and other objectives in group operations, and 12. Life insurance operations overseas- problems and opportunities. From Transactions of Society of Actuaries, 1969 Vol. 21 Pt. 1 No. 61.

Description: This paper summarizes the legislative history in 1966 and 1967 of the amendments to Social Security, including Medicare and Medicaid, that were enacted and of the significant Unemployment Insurance legislation that was almost enacted. From Transactions of Society of Actuaries 1968, Vol. 20, Pt. 1, No. 57.

Description: This paper includes three discussions. The first is about permanent type insurance used as a substitute for group term insurance. The second discussion is about long-term disability experience, offsets and underwriting. The third discussion is about medical care expense insurance including experience, trends, impact of Medicare and COB. From Transactions of Society of Actuaries 1968, Vol. 20 Pt. 2, No. 56

Description: This paper surveys the actuarial techniques connected with salary scale mathematics for the valuation of defined benefit pension plans. Followed by several discussion papers submitted

Description: The author's purpose is to attain a greater insight into the nature and significance of the social security financing method and to examine the image in the public mind of the social security financing method and its significance. From Transactions of Society of Actuaries 1959, Vol. 11, No. 31.

Description: This section contains multiple book reviews and summaries of recent publications. From Transactions of Society of Actuaries 1957, Vol. 9, No. 25.

Description: This section contains book reviews by various authors as well as a summarization of recent publications. From Transactions of Society of Actuaries 1954, Vol. 6, No. 16.