Description: This article explains how one company, American Life of New York, is using innovative applications to improve and speed the underwriting process.

Description: Product Development Section’s election results, and bio's of new members.

Description: This article begins with an overview of how the tax treatment of partial exchanges has evolved over the last decade or so, including the concerns that led the Service to resist giving taxpayers carte blanche on such transactions.The new guidance shortens from 12 to six months the window following a partial exchange in which the transaction could be called into question, and simplifies the regime by de-linking it from the exceptions to the section 72q penalty tax.4 Finally, the guidance provides coordination with recent partial annuitization legislation and answers to other open issues. This article then summarizes Rev. Proc. 2011-38 and elaborates on why the features outlined above are important and helpful improvements over prior guidance.

Description: To better understand the product development process and practices currently used at insurance companies, the Society of Actuaries Marketing and Distribution Section Council initiated a Product Development Survey in the summer of 2006. The goal of the survey was to identify company practices for product development by asking individuals with product implementation responsibilities about the process followed at their companies. For this survey, the “product development process” was viewed holistically – encompassing everything from how ideas are generated through to how products are monitored post-launch. Also, all aspects of the product development process were considered – marketing, actuarial, underwriting, finance, customer service, IT, legal/compliance, etc.

Description: As the new VM-22 framework reshapes reserving for non-variable annuities, actuaries face both opportunities and challenges. Our latest insight and highlights what you need to know about assumption setting, model validation and asset optimization ahead of 2026.

Description: Chairperson’s column likening product development to campaigning.

Description: This article describes the increasing problems in the product filing and forms approval process under state regulation. It also describes the conclusions and product filing uniformity vision that includes the formation of CARFRA which stands for Coordinated Advertising, Rate and Form Review Authority.

Description: A discussion of reverse mortgages, and their suitability for meeting the long term care needs of seniors who want to stay in their homes.

Description: This article discusses the opportunity for annuity carriers created by the SECURE Act to distribute annuities through Employer Sponsored Defined Contribution Retirement Plans. The article covers a high-level overview of the changes enacted by the law that create the opportunity, as well as the potential opportunity for future annuity sales.

Description: This is a table from an article in The Actuary Magazine entitled A Strategic Analysis of the U.S. Life Insurance Industry Part II: Products.