Description: An analysis of the revamped state sponsored retirement income pension gives insight into design and funding elements that might figure in reforming social security in the United States.

Description: An overview of the state old age pension systems in four European countries that is intended to provide additional international context for a discussion of possible design and financing reforms for US social security.

Description: This article reviews a paper developed by Rob Brown on the optimal design of retirement income security systems. The article intends to move readers to read Brown's article and consider how actuaries can play a significant role in the development and evaluation of social insurance policy. This will be of value to actuaries as the profession is presented the opportunity to participate in shaping financial security for all people.

Description: The work of the Society of Actuaries’ Committee on Post-Retirement Needs and Risks—including focus groups and Risks and Process of Retirement Surveys—offers important insights into when, how and why people retire.

Description: Industry briefings and SOA news

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: The purpose of this paper is to identify the changes in the structure and composition of families and to discuss the implications of those changes for Social Security reform.

Description: Letter from the editor discussing the articles in the June issue of In The Public Interest.

Description: Summary of the financial projections shown in the 2013 Social Security Trustees Report.

Description: Summary of Social Security's automatic adjustments in benefits and other amounts taking effect at the beginning of 2014.