The Price Optimization Task Force submitted a comment letter to the NAIC’s Casualty Actuarial and Statistical Task Force (CASTF) providing input on the recommendations section of its “Price Optimization White Paper.”

The Financial Reporting Committee, Pension Accounting Committee, Casualty Committee on Property and Liability Financial Reporting, Health Financial Reporting and Solvency Committee, and Life Financial Reporting Committee sent comments to the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB) on its “The Auditor's Use of the Work of Specialists” consultation paper.

The Terrorism Risk Insurance Subcommittee submitted a comment letter to the NAIC’s Blanks Working Group on its terrorism risk insurance supplement and instructions draft.

The Medicare Subcommittee published an issue brief offering an actuarial perspective on Medicare's long-term financial condition in the wake of the 2015 Medicare Trustees report, and the Social Security Committee also released an issue brief on the Social Security Trustees latest report that examines the social insurance program’s long-term solvency challenges.

The Medicare Subcommittee published “Does It Meet the Needs of the Beneficiaries?” “Is It Sustainable for 50 More Years?” and “Who Are the Beneficiaries?” the first three papers in its Medicare@50 series. The papers examine various aspects surrounding the program on its 50^th anniversary. Read the news release.

The Social Security Committee released an issue brief on the 2015 Social Security Trustees Report that examines the social insurance program’s long-term solvency issues and recommends that Congress should act soon to improve the long-term financial outlook of the program. 

The Casualty Practice Council, Health Practice Council, Life Practice Council, and Risk Management and Financial Reporting Council sent comments to the National Association of Insurance Commissioners (NAIC) on its Financial Condition (E) Committee questionnaire that examines the reasons for single-state solutions to help regulators develop a process for creating a uniform framework for state-based regulation.

The Medicaid Subcommittee sent a comment letter to Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) on proposed rules about Medicaid and Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP) Programs; Medicaid managed care, CHIP delivered in managed care, Medicaid and CHIP comprehensive quality strategies, and revisions related to third party liability.

The Medicare Subcommittee released an issue brief, “Medicare’s Financial Condition: Beyond Actuarial Balance,” on significant concerns about Medicare’s long-term financial health.

The Joint American Academy of Actuaries Life Experience Committee and Society of Actuaries Preferred Mortality Oversight Group submitted amendment proposals to the Life Actuarial Task Force on VM-02 Section 5A, VM-20 Sections 3 and 6, VM-M Section 1.H, and VM-A to the Valuation Manual regarding adoption of new CSO tables.

The Individual Disability Tables Work Group (IDTWG) provided this memo to responses received on the “The Individual Disability Valuation Standard Report of the Joint American Academy of Actuaries/Society of Actuaries Individual Disability Tables Work Group” (the “Report”). This memo summarizes the comments and responses.

The Academy updated its Essential Elements reports on Medicare’s Long-Term Sustainability Challenge and Securing Social Security with information from the newly released 2015 Medicare and Social Security trustees reports. The Essential Elements series is designed to make actuarial analyses of public policy issues clearer to general audiences.

The Financial Reporting Committee (FRC) sent comments to the Financial Accounting Standards Board (FASB) on issues raised during the May 21, 2015 educational session related to retrospective unlocking in long-duration contracts.

The Risk Management and Financial Reporting Council (RMFRC) submitted comments to the Actuarial Standards Board (ASB) on its Capital Adequacy Assessment for Insurers discussion draft.

The Lifetime Income Risk Task Force submitted comments to the Department of Labor regarding the proposed regulations defining fiduciaries and conflict of interest.

Two Academy representatives addressed state officials at the National Conference of Insurance Legislators (NCOIL) Summer Meeting. Shawna Ackerman, vice president for casualty, presented on price optimization during a special Property-Casualty Committee meeting. Academy Senior Life Fellow Nancy Bennett discussed principle-based reserving (PBR) at a Life Insurance & Financial Planning Committee panel discussion at NCOIL’s meeting.

The Pension Committee submitted comments to the IRS regarding the timing for release of the mortality tables under §§430(h)(3) and 417(e) of the Internal Revenue Code for 2016.

The Academy released a new Essential Elements paper, Insurance Capital Standards, that outlines U.S. and international efforts to establish new solvency and capital standards for insurers. The Essential Elements series is designed to make actuarial analyses of public policy issues clearer to general audiences.

The Risk Management and Financial Reporting Council sent a letter to the Federal Reserve Board on issues related to a “margin over current estimate” (MOCE) for international insurance capital standards.

In the July issue of HealthCheck, read the Academy’s statement following the Supreme Court’s King v. Burwell decision last month that ruled Affordable Care Act (ACA) subsidies are available to individuals in states participating in the federally facilitated marketplace. Also, follow some of the widespread media coverage of the Academy in the run-up and aftermath of King v. Burwell, read a new Academy issue brief examining wellness initiatives in several countries, and see several Medicare-related bills that were passed by the U.S. House of Representatives.