Description: This article is an update on the No Surprises Act, which is a U.S. Act aimed to reduce the risk that a person unexpectedly receives out of network charges for their health care visits. This is Part 2; Part 1 was featured in Health Watch's Sept 2024 issue.

Description: Description of US Social Security COLA effective December 2024 and other automatic adjustments effective for 2025

Description: This debate-style presentation focuses on metrics used to measure and manage insurance companies. Changes in accounting bases (LDTI, IFRS17, etc.) challenge historic metrics to be adjusted or replaced to accommodate new regimes. The long-duration nature of revenue recognition and profit emergence is unique to the insurance industry, and there is no debating the importance of accounting regimes to facilitate earnings recognition and comparability. However, insurers face challenges from the inherent mismatch between capital measures and accounting profits. This mismatch creates competing interest when it comes to both management decisions and executive compensation. To provide guidance, experts offer their unique perspectives and opinions to a debate of emerging best practices in accounting KPIs, cash-based metrics, and executive incentives. The discussion will be guided by probing questions, such as: - What challenges are faced by external users of financial statements? - Accounting changes did not impact business economics, so why discuss metrics? - What are examples of historic and emerging accounting and cash-based metrics? - How can insurers implement best practices in financial reporting? At the conclusion of the session, attendees will have an improved appreciation for actuarial valuation, specifically, the critical role that our interpretation of results plays in the broader financial system.

Description: Stakeholders in a specific state (Minnesota) were interviewed about the potential value -- and obstacles -- of a catastrophic backstop program to handle long term care (LTC) financing needs. The design would entail a payroll deduction which would produce a fund to pay LTC expenses once a deductible period (of 1 to 4 years, depending on income) was reached. This design was believed to encourage enrollees to cover the front end better than done today, whether by private insurance or other means.

Description: Virtual - Session 7C: February Is The Longest Month - Preparing the Orange Blank Actuarial Memo

Description: Session 10A: In Lieu of Services - Addressing Health-Related Social Needs in Medicaid

Description: Virtual - Session 7A: What Happens When ACOs Get SAHS-sy?

Description: Cost is a key outcome metric used by actuaries and others to determine the value of a benefit or program in health insurance. However, typically, costs assessed include only the direct costs of the program, not any indirect costs or savings, such as those associated with reduced spending on other services.

Description: Review of paper describing Collective Defined Contribution Plans. the elimination of traditional pensions by many companies have left employees without easy access to reliable retirement income Collective Defined Contribution plans which are used to a small extent in the US but more broadly used elsewhere offer an option for consideration.

Description: This newsletter provides a regulation outlook for the use of AI/ML in insurance industry, interpretations of regulatory expectations and what insurers should consider when managing risks associated with the development, implementation and use of AI/ML models/tools.