Description: This article discusses the changes in the marketing and distribution of lindividual life and annuity products. It highlights new distribution channels including banks, broker dealers, wirehouses and the Internet as well as fee-for-service financial planning.

Description: Leveraging the research papers "Emerging Technologies and their Impact on Actuarial Science and Top Actuarial Technologies," the presenters of this session will highlight current and emerging actuarial technology trends, discuss how these trends will impact the day-to-day work of actuaries, and explain what actuaries can do to adapt.

Description: This report is a summary based on current actuarial practices around the development and use of policyholder behavior assumptions including the use of dynamic modeling approaches. The research team surveyed and evaluated current practices in the industry; and highlighted current thinking on modeling human behaviors outside the life insurance industry. This project was sponsored by the SOA’s Financial Reporting Section and the Committee on Life Insurance Research.

Description: Over the past few years, the SOA Research Institute’s Mortality and Longevity Strategic Research Program has initiated studies to provide insights into the overall historical U.S. population mortality trends. During this webcast, presenters will discuss how causes of death are influencing the trends. Various perspectives will be considered including, age, period, cohort effects and cause of death mortality by socioeconomic decile/quintile. Additionally, obesity and the impact on mortality and morbidity costs in the U.S. and Canada will be examined.

Description: This report, from the Society of Actuaries [SOA] ‘Experience Studies – Individual Disability,’ represents the first study of individual disability income [IDI] lapse experience conducted jointly by LIMRA International and the Society of Actuaries [SOA] Individual Disability Insurance Experience Committee. The study examines lapse activity for years 1999 through 2001.