Announcements

• Happy Holidays from the American Academy of Actuaries! In lieu of postage to mail holiday cards, the Academy has made a donation to Capital Area Food Bank on behalf of its membership and staff.
• The National Association of Insurance Commissioners released an RFP to explore hiring consulting actuaries to assist in reviewing the reserve methodologies used by insurers offering policies subject to Actuarial Guideline 38.

Reminders

• Membership dues payment is due Jan. 1, 2013. 2013 membership dues remain at the same level as 2012. If you haven’t paid your 2013 dues, click here to conveniently pay online before Jan. 1. Log in now to pay your dues, print your invoice, or to update your profile.

News from the Actuarial Standards Board

• The ASB adopted ASOP No. 47, Risk Treatment in Enterprise Risk Management, which provides guidance to actuaries when performing professional services with respect to risk treatment for the purposes of enterprise risk management.

Website: New Postings

• The Contingent Annuity Work Group submitted a report to the NAIC’s Contingent Deferred Annuity (A) Working Group outlining the applicability of Actuarial Guideline 43 and C-3 Phase II to reserving and capital standards for Contingent Deferred Annuities.
• The Actuarial Value Subgroup submitted comments to the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services on a proposed rule establishing standards for actuarial value determinations under the Affordable Care Act (ACA).
• The Health Care Quality Work Group updated its June 2011 issue brief highlighting a number of actuarial issues that should be considered when designing and implementing accountable care organizations. 
• The Health Care Quality Work Group updated its June 2011 fact sheet providing an overview of the Medicare Shared Savings Program and the newer Pioneer ACA program.
• The Social Security Committee released an issue guide for the general public, policymakers, and the media to use as they evaluate Social Security reform proposals.
• COPLFR released its updated annual practice note on Statements of Actuarial Opinion on P/C Loss Reserves, which describes practices that are commonly employed in issuing statements of actuarial opinion on loss and loss expense reserves. Log in to read the full alert.
• The 2012 Property/Casualty Loss Reserve Law Manual is now available for purchase. The manual is designed to help appointed actuaries comply with the NAIC requirements for statements of actuarial opinion. If you have already ordered your copy, log in now for access.

Member Alerts

• Ron Gebhardtsbauer, former Academy senior pension fellow, was appointed as one of five new members to the 2013 Advisory Council on Employee Welfare and Pension Benefit Plans (ERISA Advisory Council). Log in to read the full alert.

Recently Released Publications

• December Actuarial Update: In this issue, incoming Actuarial Board for Counseling and Discipline Chairperson Bob Rietz and reappointed Actuarial Standards Board Chairperson Robert Meilander discuss their priorities for the coming year.
• December HealthCheck: Read about recent health care reform activities in the latest edition.

Academy in the News

• The Academy’s issue brief, The 80% Pension Funding Standard Myth, is cited in Chicagomag.com’s Illinois: A Long History of Underfunded Pensions.

Publication Note

• This Week will not be published next week. Publication will resume on Friday, Jan. 4, 2013.

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