Academy in the News

• Senior Health Fellow Cori Uccello explained in a front-page story of the Dec. 5 New York Times that applications for insurance on the Affordable Care Act (ACA) health exchanges don’t seek information about an applicant’s health status.
• The release of the Academy Pension Practice Council’s new issue brief, Measuring Pension Obligations, was covered by Benefits and Pensions Monitor, BenefitsPro, ProducersWeb.com, and other media outlets.
• The Academy Health Practice Council’s letter warning of the potential consequences of efforts to address insurance cancellations continued to gain attention, including in testimony before the House Ways and Means Subcommittee on Health, and in stories in The Chicago Tribune, The Detroit Free Press, The Post Bulletin (Rochester, Minn.), and NJSpotlight.com.

Public Policy Activities

• The Health Practice Council published a new fact sheet that provides an overview of the three risk-sharing mechanisms included in the ACA—the permanent risk adjustment program, temporary risk corridors, and the transitional reinsurance program. 
• Senior Life Fellow Nancy Bennett gave a presentation to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners’ (NAIC) Investment Risk-Based Capital Working Group regarding the relationship of the Asset Valuation Reserve to Life Risk-Based Capital.
• The Rate Review Practice Note Work Group submitted technical comments to the Center for Consumer Information and Insurance Oversight on the current versions of the Unified Rate Review Template and the actuarial memorandum instructions.
• The Solvency Committee commented in two separate letters to the NAIC and the International Association of Actuaries regarding the International Association of Insurance Supervisors’ paper, “Common Framework for the Supervision of Internationally Active Insurance Groups.”
• The Academy held its monthly “Academy Capitol Forum: Meet the Experts” webinar Dec. 4 with guest speaker Katherine Baicker from the Harvard School of Public Health, in which she discussed the outcomes of Oregon’s efforts to expand Medicaid through a statewide lottery. The lottery provided researchers an opportunity to study the utilization, finances, and health outcomes of those who were selected compared with those who were not. Click here to listen to the recorded webinar.

Professionalism Activities

• On Dec. 3, panelists Nancy Behrens and Janet Fagan, vice chairpersons of the Actuarial Board for Counseling and Discipline (ABCD), discussed professionalism topics covered in recent “Up to Code” articles in Contingencies magazine. The discussion included examining particulars and case studies of Precept 2 of the Code of Professional Conduct; reviewing the pros and limitations of peer review in connection with actuarial work; and ABCD considerations in balancing transparency with confidentiality. More than 3,195 attendees participated in this last professionalism webinar of the year. If you missed it or want to review any other professionalism webinars, archived recordings are available online for free to Academy members.

Member Alerts

• Health Insurance Issues: The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services released proposed rules on several provisions in the ACA relating to the 2015 payment parameters for the risk-sharing mechanisms, cost-sharing reductions, and federally facilitated exchanges. The rules also address standards on composite rating, the annual open enrollment period for 2015, the actuarial value calculator, the Small Business Health Options Program, and annual limits on cost-sharing for stand-alone dental plans. Log in to read the full alert.

Opportunities to Learn and Earn CE

• Jan. 2, 2014, IFRS Update: Where in the World Are We Going With Insurance Contracts? Are you wondering how key global and domestic stakeholders responded to the insurance contracts accounting exposure drafts and where international accounting is headed? Find out Jan. 2 as the Academy hosts a webinar during which presenters will provide: a discussion of the Academy’s comments on key issues in the International Accounting Standards Board and Financial Accounting Standard Board exposure drafts on insurance contracts; an overview of concepts and concerns from globally influential bodies on those exposure drafts; and, a look at the direction of global convergence.

Reminder from the Actuarial Standards Board

• The comment deadline for the exposure draft, Principle-Based Reserves for Life Products, is Dec. 16. The proposed standard applies to actuaries when performing professional services on behalf of life insurers, including fraternal benefit societies, in connection with the calculation or review of reserves for individual life insurance policies, where such reserves are represented as being in compliance with the provisions of the Standard Valuation Law and the Valuation Manual governing principle-based reserves.

No Membership Dues Increase in 2014

• Renew your membership by clicking here, without logging in, to conveniently pay your dues. If you prefer, you may also log in to pay and make changes to your account. Remember to renew your membership by Jan. 1 to avoid late fees.

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