Insights and Ideas from the American Academy of Actuaries
Contingencies
Features
My Career as a Garbage Collector
By Mark Kinzer Life in the trenches at Warren Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway I've just recently retired, so my story can now be told. For the last 10 years, when I went to actuarial meetings anyway, I described myself as a garbage collector....
Is Data the Rx for Good Health Outcomes?
An international perspective on health data collection and usage By Yair Babad and Joe Allbright The authors are affiliated with the American Academy of Actuaries Health Practice International Committee. This article explores how health...
Digital Decluttering—This New Year’s, why not spend some time on mainframe maintenance?
By Matt Testa A couple of years ago my laptop was failing, and I didn't want to deal with it. I struggled through the five stages of technological grief-denial that the device was more than just a little sluggish and was actually just a drain on...Departments
Member Spotlight
Rade Musulin
Why did you become an actuary?
I became an actuary by accident. I had planned to attend law school or graduate school in international relations but due to financial considerations I decided to stop attending school after graduating from...
Member Spotlight
Tricia Matson
Why did you become an actuary?
I decided to become an actuary late in college, based on my interest in math. It seemed like an interesting, challenging career choice; I'm so glad I made that decision.
Describe a challenge you have...
Inside Track
A Trashy Tale
By Eric P. Harding
We get a lot of packages here at the Harding household. More during the pandemic. Even more during the holiday season in the middle of the pandemic.
All those packages mean lots of boxes to break down and recycle. That's my...
Letters
Letter to the Editor
'An Excellent … Edition'
I congratulate you on an excellent November/December edition of Contingencies. The reprint of "Black Warriors" reminds us of the systemic racism that existed in the military and in the insurance industry. The piece by...
President’s Message
New Year, New Challenges
By Tom Campbell
If you're reading this, it must be 2021. Just about everyone I know said they couldn't wait for 2020 to end, and now that it has, we have to ask, "What will the New Year bring?" Are we doomed to repeat 2020, like the movie...
Commentary
Bringing Actuarial Skills to the Defined Contribution World
By Mark Shemtob
As the private-sector retirement program landscape continues its march to a defined contribution (DC) world, actuaries might consider how their skills can be applied to improve retirement outcomes under DC programs. Our expertise...
Up To Code
A Little Help From My Friends
By Albert J. Beer
Judging by vocal tones and body language, I think it is reasonable to assume that, upon hearing a reference to the Actuarial Board for Counseling and Discipline (ABCD), most actuaries would be more likely to think of the...
Tradecraft
Calculation of Health Care Risk Adjustment Accruals
By Emily Puntenney and Gerry Smedinghoff
Medicare Advantage with Part D (MA-PD), Affordable Care Act (ACA) markets, and some state Medicaid managed care programs include a risk adjustment (RA) component. Each program employs RA to ensure issuers...
Puzzles
A Crossnumber Puzzle With Squares
By Stephen Meskin
For those who remember the puzzles I posed in my "Crossnumber Puzzles" (January/February 2019), the puzzles this time are to fill a 4 × 5 matrix in which each of the nine clues (four across and five down) is the same: a perfect...
Cryptic Puzzle
Phraseology
By Tom Toce
Puzzles are a good distraction during the COVID quarantine. We're ten months in, as I write this. The solution to this puzzle involves a three-word phrase, which you will need in order to arrive at a completed grid. If you find the...
End Paper
What Might Have Been, What Still Might Be
By Bob Rietz
I put a "Do Not Disturb" sign on my home office door, and my wife knows the reason for it. The NCAA men's basketball tournament is about to start, and I need to fill out my brackets. This involves printing brackets from multiple...
