The Pension Committee submitted a comment letter to the Actuarial Standards Board responding to an exposure draft of ASOP No. 27, Selection of Economic Assumptions for Measuring Pension Obligations. The letter addressed several provisions of the exposure draft, including scope, selection of reasonable assumptions, investment return assumptions, and measurement-specific conditions. The Joint Committee on Retiree Health also submitted a letter, focusing on the interaction of the ASOP to retiree group benefits practice.
The Medicare Steering Committee updated its annual issue brief that offers an actuarial perspective on Medicare's financial condition and outlines the public policy options to address the program's long-term financial challenges.
(May 22, 2012)The Health Practice Financial Reporting Committee sent comments to the Actuarial Standards Board on revisions to ASOPs 22, Statements of Opinion Based on Asset Adequacy Analysis by Actuaries for Life and Health Insurers and 28, Statements of Actuarial Opinion Regarding Health Insurance Liabilities and Assets.
The Actuarial Value Subgroup sent a letter to CCIIO offering comments on the Actuarial Value and Cost-Sharing Reduction bulletin, specifically addressing the proposed actuarial value calculator. This letter supplements comments submitted April 2 on the cost-sharing inputs for the calculator.
(May 16, 2012)The Pension Committee submitted a comment letter to the Internal Revenue Service responding to proposed regulations for longevity annuity contracts. The letter commended the IRS and Treasury Department for focusing on the problem of longevity risk, and recommended modest changes to the proposed regulations to further enhance retirement security.
The Pension Committee submitted a comment letter to the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) responding to proposed regulations for partial annuity distribution options under defined benefit (DB) pension plans, commenting specifically on the proposed structure of Section 417(e) exemptions, and transition issues.
COPLFR submitted comments to the NAIC on the Blanks Working Group’s proposed 2012 Actuarial Opinion Instructions.
(May 01, 2012)The Pension Practice Council published a new issue brief examining the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation (PBGC) premium structure and current proposals to revise that structure. The issue brief discusses and differentiates between two categories of costs faced by the PBGC: going-forward costs and legacy costs.
The Risk Management and Financial Reporting Council wrote a letter to the Department of Treasury urging that actuarial science be one of the specific considerations for members of the proposed Financial Research Advisory Committee that will support the work of the Office of Financial Research.
(April 13, 2012)The Natural Catastrophe Subcommittee provided comments to the National Conference of Insurance Legislators on natural catastrophe insurance reform options, focusing on damage prevention and risk financing.
(April 13, 2012)The Joint Economic Scenario Generator Project Oversight Group of the American Academy of Actuaries and the Society of Actuaries has released an updated FAQ document that provides important information on the Academy’s Interest Rate Generator (AIRG). In January 2012, the POG updated the AIRG with historical yield curves through December 2011.
(April 04, 2012)