Description: Overview of plans designed to cover out-of-pocket medical costs as a supplement to major medical coverage.

Description: As actuaries in health care, we spend most of our time focused on reviewing claims, enrollment and clinical data. That information is captured while patients are in health care facilities. Yet most people spend only a small fraction of their time in these facilities. This article explores what types of data are available to actuaries the provide a more holistic view of the member so that a members physical and emotional needs, the social determinants of health can be taken into consideration along with their clinical needs. Two uses cases are presented so actuaries can see how these types of analyses can be leveraged to improve clinical, operational, and financial performance of risk bearing health entities. Understanding the customer (member) not just the patient enables actuaries to provide new insights and values to our stakeholders across a wide range of business and risk applications.

Description: This is a discussion of the medical loss ratio, the confusion and debate over the calculation method under the new MLR requirement, and the opportunities it presents to consulting actuaries.

Description: Enterprise Risk Management is often thought to be synonymous with managing an insurance company toward financial objectives with a focus on insurance-specific risks. Some might argue though that operational risks are the crux of all risks confronted by an insurance company and ultimately drive the company’s outcomes.Operational risk is the risk of impact on financial outcomes due to operational events, involving internal systems, personnel, procedures or controls, and also external events. Operational risk exists in all business activities, covering fraud, human error, accounting errors, legal actions and system failures. All of these activities could occur during the course of conducting day-to-day business operations. Additionally, insurance executives must consider the pace of change in the external environment and potential impacts on their business. This presentation is focused on operational risks, current and emerging, faced by health insurance companies.

Description: What is the difference between a Single-Payer and Universal Health Care System, and how could the U.S. implement a system that would reduce the growth of medical costs while increasing quality.

Description: This article describes Medicare Supplement and short-term care products in more detail, and we compare their risk profiles. We explore the concept that these two products—when offered together—may provide a complementary hedge of certain policyholder behavior risks.

Description: Savings from biosimilars have accelerated significantly in the past few years. There has been a number of relatively recent biosimilar launches that can help to shape our expectations of the financial impact that could result from this year’s big event. Savings from biosimilars have accelerated significantly in the past few years. There has been a number of relatively recent biosimilar launches that can help to shape our expectations of the financial impact that could result from this year’s big event.

Description: Actuaries are leveraging predictive modeling and machine learning more and more as they strive to provide greater value to their stakeholders. Actuarial standards of practice provide guidance around modeling and data. The world has changed significantly over the last few years, so it is important these models be tested for fairness as well as any statistical biases. This article addresses some of the key issues actuaries need to be aware of as Corporations and society work through the responsible us of this technology and underlying data.

Description: Essay reforming healthcare where participants have a vested interest in reaching the best answer.

Description: The big event of 2023 is the launch of multiple Humira biosimilars, which began in January with the arrival of Amgen’s Amjevita on the market. The launch of Amjevita kicks off the process of changing the specialty drug marketplace in the United States. The expectation of the full impact of this big event is very hopeful, but there is still uncertainty several months after its beginning. Humira is the highest-selling drug in the world and has been since 2013 (Figure 1)—except for when COVID-19 projects temporarily surpassed it. The world is eagerly awaiting the launch of multiple biosimilar drugs to compete with Humira and hopefully bring more competitive pricing to the benefit of payers and patients everywhere.