From the Editor
By Nate Worrell
Long-Term Care News, April 2021
Recently, I had the chance to binge-watch a cheesy romcom series with my grandma while sipping margaritas. This was a departure from the usual evening of a game or two of cards and a dose of the news. It was so much fun. She cooed over the handsome cast members and got fired up at the backstabbing dramatic moments. It was a side of her I hadn’t really seen, and I am so grateful I had that opportunity.
Time is such a precious resource. It’s the one thing Warren Buffet says he can’t buy. Grandma is now facing tough choices about giving up the keys to her car and getting extra help at home. She is losing her vision, and moving around is getting harder. She is having to face the harsh reality of losing her autonomy. The cost of not being able to perform an “activity of daily living” is significantly more than a financial amount.
I have no doubt that she will continue to thrive in whatever situation results; she is a double cancer survivor after all. And maybe, if she’s lucky, she’ll get a caretaker who might also qualify as eye candy in a steamy streaming series.
In this newsletter, Jon Hebig recounts his experiences recording podcasts for the section. There are certainly some bingeworthy episodes! On the topic of dealing with difficult decisions, Bill Naylon provides insider insight on items to consider for managing closed blocks of long-term care business.
Thanks for taking the time to consider this content, and let me know of any series I should recommend to my grandma!
—Nate Worrell, on behalf of the LTC Section Newsletter Co-editors
Section Statement on COVID-19
The Long-Term Care Insurance section would like to express our support for all those who are on the front lines of the current pandemic. Thank you for caring for our loved ones in these difficult times.
As a way to spread hope and shine a little light in the darkness, we welcome any stories you may have of perseverance, innovation or resilience. Please email them to sections@soa.org as we would love to feature some of them in a future newsletter.
Section News
Podcasts
- February—“Alzheimer’s Disease and Its Impact on LTC” Marie Kolendo of the Alzheimer’s Association provides an overview of Alzheimer’s disease, its impact on the LTC industry and an update on recent research.
Webcast
- Past webcasts are available for section members through SOA Engage.
Research
- COVID Impacts on LTC Insurance Industry—The survey was on the impact of COVID-19 on Long-Term Care (LTC) insurance mortality, voluntary lapse and morbidity experience covering the period from April 1, 2020, through September 30, 2020. Responses came back from 15 companies that represented approximately 50 percent of the insured lives in force in 2019.
The Buzz
This is a list of articles compiled from around the web that may be of interest to section members. Links to the articles do not imply endorsement from the SOA and/or the LTCI Section. Please submit considerations for weblinks to sections@soa.org.
Cross Section: Articles of Note from Other SOA Section Newsletters
- From the Financial Reporting section: LDTI Implications and Insights: IDI and LTC. This article highlights key implications and insights as a result of the change to the determination of reserves under LDTI for IDI and LTC products.
From the Web
ILTCI CONFERENCE COMING UP! REGISTER FOR FREE—If you are involved in the long term and extended care industry in any way you won’t want to miss this event! Over 40 sessions!
News Feeds/Compilers
Websites to Watch
- Milken Institute Long Term Care “Landscape” report and collaboration with PBS Next Avenue for COVID-19 impacts to the Future of Aging.
- org—The LTC COVID website is managed and funded by the International Long-term Care Policy Network (ILPN) and Care Policy and Evaluation Centre (CPEC) at the London School of Economics and Political Science (LSE). They have an active Twitter account (@LTCCovid) that posts global developments.
Nate Worrell, FSA, is a client support actuary with Moodys’ Analytics. He can be contacted at nathan.worrell@moodys.com.