Academy Office Closed Monday for Presidents Day Holiday
The Academy’s office will be closed on Monday, Feb. 20, in observance of the Presidents Day federal holiday.
HPC Volunteers Discuss ACA, Health Care Issues in Annual Capitol Hill Visits
Members of the Academy’s Health Practice Council (HPC) made their annual visits to Capitol Hill Thursday and Friday, talking with federal lawmakers and agency officials about relevant public policy issues related to health care and the future of the Affordable Care Act (ACA). Eighteen volunteers met with staff from more than 40 congressional offices and government agencies, discussing topics surrounding ongoing ACA repeal-and-replace proposals and highlighting the Individual and Small Group Markets Committee’s three recent health care issue briefs on high-risk pools, association health plans, and selling insurance across state lines.
Several Academy volunteers did brief video presentations outlining the visits for the Academy’s Facebook page. See their updates and visit our Facebook page for more.
The Politico Pulse daily newsletter highlighted the Capitol Hill visits, and the briefs our volunteers produced that examine key public policy considerations for policymakers weighing proposals to replace or reform the ACA.
New Health Issue Briefs Released
The Academy released two new health issue briefs this week, following last week’s issue brief on high-risk pools. Developed by the Academy’s Individual and Small Group Markets Committee, the issue briefs address key issues under consideration in ACA repeal or replacement proposals: association health plans and selling health insurance across state lines.
“As policymakers consider various ACA replacement or reform proposals, we’re focused on informing the debate with an explanation of how the specifics embedded in those proposals matter for the public, policyholders, private and government health care payers, and others,” said Academy Senior Health Fellow Cori Uccello.
Professionalism Outreach
Joeff Williams, the Academy’s vice president for professionalism, gave a presentation Thursday to more than 100 attendees at TIAA in Charlotte, N.C., and in New York via teleconference. He discussed professional ethics, laying out how the Academy’s professionalism infrastructure supports actuaries as they consider ethical issues.
Public Employment Opportunity
The Washington State Office of the Insurance Commissioner (OIC) is seeking candidates for the position of Actuary 3 in its rates & forms division. This position contributes to OIC’s goals of protecting consumers, maintaining a healthy insurance climate, and improving customer service by leading and overseeing OIC’s property and casualty actuarial services unit, supervising and directing P/C actuarial staff in their review of rate filings, working on the actuarial aspects of financial exams, and handling of other actuarial matters. Visit OIC’s website for qualifications and to apply.
Updated for 2017, the Academy’s Life & Health Valuation Law Manual and Property/Casualty Loss Reserve Law Manual are available to order. Both manuals are updated with the latest regulations, providing you with essential information during opinion writing seasons. The manuals are available in a variety of formats, including single and multiple user versions, to allow you to order the one that best suits your needs. Order your copy today.
Upcoming Events
Extra-Early Discounts for PBR Boot Camp: Extra-early registration rates are available through Feb. 28 for the Academy’s PBR Boot Camp, to be held May 22–24 in Orlando, Fla. Offered for the first time and sold-out last year, this intensive two-and-a-half-day seminar will deliver instructional sessions and interactive case studies to provide attendees with key learning experiences to implement and utilize principle-based reserving (PBR). Earn up to 24 hours of organized-activity continuing education credit. Register now and plan to join your fellow life actuaries for this popular seminar that will ensure you stay ahead of the PBR curve.
Professionalism Webinar to Examine the Code: The Academy will host a professionalism webinar on the Code of Professional Conduct, from noon to 1:30 p.m. EDT on Tuesday, March 28. The webinar—suitable for actuaries in all practice areas—will feature Tom Wildsmith, immediate past president; Joeff Williams, vice president, professionalism; and Chad Wischmeyer, member of the Council on Professionalism. This quarterly webinar series is a popular way for members to stay abreast of current professionalism topics and earn valuable continuing education credit. Save the date on your calendar and plan to attend.
Extra-Early Registration Open for Annual Meeting and Public Policy Forum: The best discounts are now available for the Academy’s 2017 Annual Meeting and Public Policy Forum, to be held Nov. 14–15 at the Fairmont Hotel in Washington, D.C. This annual, exceptional event will give you a unique and in-depth look at the top public policy issues facing the actuarial profession. Register today at the discounted extra-early rate to assure you are there to get the information you need to stay on top of the issues that matter the most to you, your profession, and our nation.
Disaster Insurance Papers Published Following November Conference
Academy members may be interested in papers published this week by Resources for the Future and the Wharton Risk Management and Decision Processes Center on the role of government in disaster insurance markets. The Academy was a co-sponsor of the November workshop that led to the papers, which cover insurance topics including floods, earthquakes, terrorism, and all-hazards.
Alerts
The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services issued a proposed rule for 2018 on changes to help stabilize health insurance marketplaces.
The U.S. Government Accountability Office released a biennial report to congressional committees on “high-risk” federal programs. The report identifies “government operations with greater vulnerabilities to fraud, waste, abuse, and mismanagement or that are in need of transformation to address economy, efficiency, or effectiveness challenges.”
Subscribe to Member Alerts: Subscribers to the Academy’s alerts are notified by email when a new alert is posted in their area(s) of interest. The alerts are available in five areas of focus: casualty, health, life, pension, and cross-practice issues. Academy members may subscribe to any or all of them free of charge as a member service after signing in to the member section of the website.
In the News
LifeHealthPro, BenefitsLink.com, and Healthcare Intelligence Network cited the Individual and Small Group Markets Committee’s new health care issue briefs on association health plans, selling insurance across state lines, and high-risk pools.
Senior Health Fellow Cori Uccello discussed the significance of the ACA’s cost-sharing reduction subsidies in an Axios story on top priorities for health insurers. An Advisory Board story on the health of the ACA exchanges quoted Uccello, who said that “what we know about enrollment at this time doesn’t signal the degree of shrinking enrollment expected in a premium spiral.”
A subscriber-only National Journal article on the future of the ACA cited HPC Vice President Shari Westerfield’s comment that rolling back some of the essential health benefits would lower premiums, but enrollees would get fewer benefits, too.
Senior Pension Fellow Ted Goldman explained the importance of long-term sustainability for context in a Denton Record-Chronicle (Texas) story on the city’s management of contributions to its firefighters’ pension fund.
The Oregonian cited the Academy’s issue brief, The 80% Pension Funding Standard Myth, in a story about Oregon’s Public Employee Retirement System. The story was reprinted by The Bulletin (Bend, Ore.), and the issue brief was also cited by Lawyers.com.
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