Description: Note from Editor introducing the articles in this issue.

Description: Discussion of the implications of the newly unveiled health care reform proposal by Senator Baucus. Key issues include abandonment of the CLASS Act, inclusion of LTC in cafeteria plans, funding and tax concerns, individual mandate, privacy concerns, play-or-pay employer mandate, impact on Medicare and Medicaid, and gridlock in the legislative finalization process.

Description: A model for an effective, cost efficient national public LTC/LTCI education program that will increase LTCI sales nationwide.

Description: Read the September 2016 issue of International News published by the International Section. Newsletters provide practical information for the working actuary, articles on trends that impact sections and news about section activities.

Description: The authors take up two questions: • How do I create my Personal Development Plan? • How will the Competency Framework tool help me design my future?

Description: Summary of interview with Bob Collett and Fred Kilbourne regarding their work on the Critical Review of the U.S. Actuarial Profession

Description: A pension actuary and a life actuary collaborate to express public pension liability and asset issues in terms and figures that an insurer would use

Description: Four secrets to market yourself properly and maintain personal connections.

Description: Adjusting GAAP reinsurance reserves to account for reinsurance protection against the events that trigger direct reserve constraints (such as NPR capping or LFPB flooring) can be a challenge any time. Ceding a block of business that is already in force increases the challenge—especially if one of those constraints was already present at inception of the reinsurance. This article builds on previous work (published in the July 2022 and June 2023 issues) to show how to measure initial reinsurance reserves in a way that complies with AICPA guidance and prepares for effective measurement of subsequent changes in the effects of the constraints.

Description: A typical course has some "hard" parts. These "hard" parts are the places where weaker students begin to fail, lose interest, and give up. The paper introduces a metric by which to evaluate each course topic. High metric values indicate "hard parts" of courses. The paper recommends spending more course time on hard parts and less course time on easy parts. The paper also recommends using disclosure: Tell students - this part of the course is "hard" and they may feel uncomfortable which is why more time is being spent on it." This approach to hard parts works! Failure rates are significantly reduced, while retention, satisfaction, and student scores improve.