Deadline Today for Online Registration for Annual Meeting and Public Policy Forum
Online registration ends today, Nov. 10, for the Academy’s Annual Meeting and Public Policy Forum, which will be held this coming Tuesday and Wednesday in Washington, D.C. The full program is available online for details of the more than 40 experts speaking and available continuing education and Joint Board for the Enrollment of Actuaries credits. You will glimpse the soon-to-be-released Magic School Bus Takes a Risk, a Scholastic book designed for the Academy to introduce the actuarial profession to grades 3–5 in D.C. public schools.
When you attend, consider bringing a recently retired smartphone as part of our Upcycle program to benefit The Actuarial Foundation. Also, select sessions will stream live on the Academy’s Facebook page, including the presidential transition and Bob Woodward’s keynote address during Tuesday’s lunch. Visit our Facebook page—and follow us, if you are not already—for more information.
Join us for practice-specific breakout sessions, get the latest news on the key public policy and professionalism issues in the Trump administration’s first year in office, and hear from a high-profile roster of keynote and plenary session speakers, including Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and author Bob Woodward of the Washington Post.
The Academy’s Myers, Farley, and outstanding volunteer awards will be presented service awards, and Tuesday’s dinner will feature lively performances by the critically acclaimed Shakespeare Theatre Company. There’s still time to join us—register today.
CPC Provides Comments on Flood Insurance Legislation
The Casualty Practice Council sent a letter Wednesday to the U.S. House of Representatives offering comments on H.R. 2874, the revised 21st Century Flood Reform Act. “A number of important reforms are in the bill as it is written, but more can be done to aid flood risk assessment and mitigation, and help address the [National Flood Insurance Program’s] sustainability,” said Rade Musulin, the Academy’s vice president, casualty.
Academy, IAAHS Host End-of-Life Care Webinar
The Academy and the International Actuarial Association Health Section (IAAHS) co-hosted a well-attended webinar Friday, “End-of-Life Care in an Aging World: A Global Perspective.” Panelists Joseph Allen Allbright and Zerong Yu, members of the Academy’s Health Practice International Committee, discussed issues related to aging and end-of-life care. The webinar was moderated by April Choi, an Academy Board member and a member of the committee. Slides and audio will be available free to members early next week.
Professionalism and Public Policy Outreach
Multiemployer Plans Committee Chairperson Josh Shapiro provided an overview of the Academy’s work and Capitol Hill developments on multiemployer plan issues at the Middle Atlantic Actuarial Association’s annual meeting Wednesday in Columbia, Md. Academy General Counsel and Director of Professionalism Paul Kollmer-Dorsey also presented a session on professionalism developments.
Actuarial Board for Counseling and Discipline (ABCD) member David Driscoll delivered a presentation on “Codes of Conduct, Standards of Practice, and the ABCD” to the Actuaries Club of Boston on Wednesday.
Health Practice Council member Catherine Murphy-Barron provided an overview of the council’s federal health policy activities during the past year to Excellus’ corporate actuarial forum near Rochester, N.Y., on Friday.
Recently Released
The November HealthCheck covers the Academy’s and the Health Practice Council’s input on the Trump administration’s executive order on health care, including the potential effects on association health plans, cost-sharing reductions, and the individual market; legislative, regulatory, and judicial updates; and a preview of health sessions at next week’s Annual Meeting and Public Policy Forum.
Save the Date—Pension Webinar Set for Dec. 8
The Pension Practice Council will host a webinar, “Valuation of Lump-Sum Benefits,” on Friday, Dec. 8, from noon to 1 p.m. EST. Continuing education will be available. Registration will open next week for this event.
A referendum to expand Medicaid was overwhelmingly approved by Maine voters on Tuesday. The vote, which followed five unsuccessful legislative attempts, marks the first use in the country of a ballot measure to expand Medicaid. Gov. Paul LePage had previously vetoed all attempts at expansion.
The U.S. Department of the Treasury indicated that plan representatives of multiemployer defined benefit plans that are interested in applying for benefit suspensions under the Multiemployer Pension Reform Act of 2014 may request a pre-application conference with Treasury, prior to submitting a formal application.
The U.S. House of Representatives voted to repeal the Independent Payment Advisory Board by a 307-111 vote, and passed a bill to reauthorize funding for the Children’s Health Insurance Program by a 242-174 vote.
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.
Public Policy Activities
The Health Practice Councilsent a letter to the U.S. departments of Treasury, Labor, and Health and Human Services on the Trump administration’s Oct. 12 executive order.
The Life Reinsurance Work Group submitted a comment letter to the NAIC’s Life Actuarial (A) Task Force on yearly renewable term reinsurance premiums under Section 20 of the Valuation Manual.
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