Description: The Part D program is funded through a variety of government subsidies and manufacturer discounts. The federal reinsurance, initially designed as protection from catastrophic spending, became a primary source of subsidies for the program. When the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) is fully implemented in 2025, the funding of Part D will realign to its original intent.

Description: Investigate Deloitte's methodology to quantify the cost of health inequities attributable to racial bias, gender/sex bias and socioeconomic bias. We will illustrate the methodology by calculating total potential cost savings across different disease states and discuss both the role that actuaries play in addressing health inequity and the steps that organizations can take to activate health equity.

Description: "Most patients enter the health care system through their primary care provider or through the Emergency Room or an Urgent Care Center. How an emergency room is structured, managed, and provides care is one of the major forces impacting the total cost of care. Yet it is often an after-thought and ignored by both health plans and health systems. In reality, the structured introduction of efficient practices can substantially reduce the quantity and cost of health care services. Further explore useful information to better understand and see how there are still substantial opportunities for improvement."

Description: "Examine the impact of traditional deductibles on health care equity and the need for innovative plan designs. You will learn about the limitations of consumer-driven health care costs broadly today, as well as alternative cost-sharing approaches that have been successful in driving consumerism without exposing members to high costs. By attending the session, you will be able to: Have a clearer understanding of the issues surrounding deductibles Be equipped with practical ideas for creating more equitable and effective cost-sharing solutions Assess the feasibility and potential impact of implementing these solutions for your own organization"

Description: Re/insurance rates have been increasing since 2018, although pricing momentum has decelerated recently. Insurers and reinsurers are working to enhance profitability and improve the value proposition for clients in an environment of uncertainty about natural catastrophes, COVID-19-related losses, and social inflation, among other factors. This article describes drivers of the current underwriting cycle, compares it with past cycles, and provides considerations for the future.

Description: Many retirement actuaries have experience developing, implementing, and monitoring Liability Driven Investing (LDI) strategies for plan sponsors. These strategies typically involve modifying a plan’s investment strategy to remove a significant portion of the investment and interest rate risk now or at some point in the future when specific triggers are met. The tactics often involve the use of fixed income assets to cash flow and/or duration match the liabilities. In the spirit of helping actuaries expand their roles in an evolving defined contribution world, this article explores the application of LDI and derisking strategies within defined contribution and individual retirement accounts. The economic theory behind this approach is called the lifecycle hypothesis, or lifecycle finance. The benefits of the lifecycle finance method are that it provides a safe approach to save for retirement and a secure source of floor income during retirement. Similar to pension plans, each individual has his or her own idiosyncratic needs, wants, and risks that should be considered. Actuaries are uniquely situated to help defined contribution plan sponsors, individuals, and even themselves implement the lifecycle finance approach by developing and distributing tools and methods that focus on income (rather than wealth), LDI strategies, and personalization.

Description: This article discusses how risk management was a central element in the conduct of monetary policy in the United States as espoused by then Fed Chairman Alan Greenspan .