Description: Public Law 93-445 provided for a complete restructuring of the railroad retirement system. This paper discusses 2 of the issues/problems underlying the need for the restructuring. These were 1 concurrent social security benefits paid to railroad annuitants 2 the approach used to increase benefits to keep up with inflation. Also a discussion of the basic achievement of the new law, which was to create a two-tiered benefit structure. Followed by 2 discussion papers submitted

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: The staff report on the the Disability Insurance Program. An interesting and informative report reviews the history of the program and presents 10 findings and recommendations.

Description: This paper examines the problem of a growing net benefit reduction for working women who are entitled to benefits in their own right, as well as to benefits as surviving spouses of covered workers.

Description: Diverse Risks 2016 Call for Essays

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: Estimation of hazard rates at extremely old ages poses serious challenges to researchers: 1 The observed mortality deceleration may be at least partially an artifact of mixing different birth cohorts with different mortality heterogeneity effect 2 Standard assumptions of hazard rate estimates may be invalid when risk of death is extremely high at old ages 3 Ages of very old people may be exaggerated. In this paper we propose an alternative approach, which gives an opportunity to resolve the first two problems by compiling data for more homogeneous single-year birth cohorts with hazard rates measured at narrow monthly age intervals. Possible ways of resolving the third problem of hazard rate estimation were elaborated.

Description: This paper suggests that two opposing pressures are at work in the United States. One is the limit to the number of retired adults that the nation can support. The other is the growing diversity of needs and desires of older people and employers. These two opposing pressures will frame the issues of the future.

Description: Estimation of hazard rates at extremely old ages poses serious challenges to researchers: 1 The observed mortality deceleration may be at least partially an artifact of mixing different birth cohorts with different mortality heterogeneity effect 2 Standard assumptions of hazard rate estimates may be invalid when risk of death is extremely high at old ages 3 Ages of very old people may be exaggerated. In this paper we propose an alternative approach, which gives an opportunity to resolve the first two problems by compiling data for more homogeneous single-year birth cohorts with hazard rates measured at narrow monthly age intervals. Possible ways of resolving the third problem of hazard rate estimation were elaborated.

Description: Transcript of Session 3A from the 2008 Living to 100 Symposium discusses the use of mortality in social insurance systems in the US and Canada.