American Academy of Actuaries-Actuaries in the news

Actuaries in the news

Here are links to some recent news stories in which the Academy or Academy members appear. Note: These are links to external websites; some may require registration. The Academy is not responsible for the content of these websites.

Remember longevity
April 22, 2008 — National Underwriter's online news service quotes the North American Actuarial Council's request that the Academy draw more attention to Americans’ increasing lifespans. The NAAC letter, signed by 15 presidents and presidents-elect of North American actuarial associations, warns that failure to adapt to increasing longevity could threaten the viability of many financial security arrangements.

Medicare needs more than a bandage
April 7, 2008, The Greenville News — A recent editorial cites an Academy issue brief that provides an actuarial perspective on the 2008 Medicare trustees report. The Academy says that fixing Medicare's 75-year deficit would require an immediate 122 percent increase in the Medicare payroll tax, a 51 percent cut in benefits, or a combination of the two.

Patience is a virtue
April 1, 2008 — AARP Bulletin TodayThe Academy’s former senior pension fellow, Ron Gebhardtsbauer, discusses the advantages of waiting to collect Social Security benefits. He said, "Waiting until age 70 gives you a much bigger income for the rest of your life."

Academy's Cronin featured on BestDay (audio link)
Feb. 21, 2008 — In an interview with BestDay Audio (a news production from A.B. Best), outgoing Academy Executive Director Kevin Cronin offers an update on the actuarial profession, background on the Academy, a summary of recent Academy accomplishments, and a look ahead.

The 8 percent (Social Security) solution
Feb. 17, 2008 — Bruce Schobel, chairperson of the Academy’s Retirement Security Principles Task Force, reveals some of the lesser-known facts about Social Security benefits in the Baltimore Sun's Sunday financial column.

Taking benefits early could be costly later
Jan. 29, 2008, The Columbus Dispatch — The Academy’s senior pension fellow, Ron Gebhardtsbauer, cautions that baby boomers who retire early will forever reduce not only their Social Security benefit, but their spouses’ as well. He says the longer you and your spouse live, the more you lose.

The elephant in the room
Jan. 23, 2008 — Just days before the South Carolina Democratic primary, a Greenville News editorial focuses on the lack of "comprehensive attention" from presidential candidates and Congress on Social Security and Medicare's financial problems. The editorial cites estimates in an Academy issue brief, Medicare’s Financial Condition: Beyond Actuarial Balance.

Is it smart to take Social Security early?
Jan. 16, 2008 —Depending on a retiree's circumstances, taking Social Security benefits at 62 might not be a smart bet.

To get a rough sense of what could be at stake over the long run, try out the online calculator developed by USA Today. It's the result of a collaborative effort between the newspaper and the Academy, which provided the mathematical estimates used in the calculator.

The Academy has been a leading source for a USA Today special report, "Turning 62: The retirement boom begins":

Boomers' eagerness to retire could cost them

Early retirees try to fill gap in health coverage

Older baby boomers caught all the breaks

For those who want to dig a little deeper, many related actuarial resources are on the Web. They include Academy publications on Social Security and Medicare issues, the Social Security Administration's Office of the Chief Actuary, and the Actuarial Foundation's "Women at Risk."

20 questions
Dec. 31, 2007 — As mentioned in Marc Oberholtzer's article in the January 2008 Best's Review, the Academy's Committee on Property and Liability Financial Reporting (COPLFR) has published an overview of the loss reserving process, including a sample checklist of actuarial information that might be helpful to P/C insurers' audit committees and boards of directors.

Medicare: A primary issue
Dec. 2, 2007 — In a timely piece in the New Hampshire Union Leader, Senior Health Fellow Cori Uccello urges the presidential candidates to start paying attention to Medicare’s financial difficulties. "Candidates need to break the silence, acknowledge the problem, and begin a public dialogue that addresses the tradeoffs necessary to ensure Medicare’s future," writes Uccello. Uccello's piece is published during the height of primary season, which brings national attention to New Hampshire and to the state's largest newspaper, the Union Leader. New Hampshire will hold the first primary of the 2008 presidential election on Jan. 8.

What's the better pension benefit?
Nov. 29, 2007 — Senior Pension Fellow Ron Gebhardtsbauer says in a BusinessWeek feature that a traditional pension plan generally suits older employees better than a 401(k), because of how benefits are calculated.

When I grow up . . .
Nov. 11, 2007 — I want to be an actuary! This San Antonio Express-News jobs section feature explores the actuarial profession (and estimates there are only about 40,000 certified actuaries in the entire world).

Facing down "longevity's evil twin"
Oct. 28, 2007 — Taking one small bite after another, inflation can consume huge chunks of a retiree's nest egg as the years go by. But there are ways to fight back. A Washington Post columnist consults several experts on inflation risk, including the Academy's Ron Gebhardtsbauer, and offers a few suggestions.

Hold on, let me ask my actuary
Oct. 24, 2007 — A recent Reuters feature discusses the value of having an actuary’s help when making retirement decisions. An actuary can help “crunch all of your numbers” and will have a “grasp of Social Security rules, life expectancies, taxes and pension law.” Senior Pension Fellow Ron Gebhardtsbauer provides comment.

Walk, don't run
Oct. 21, 2007 — When should you begin collecting Social Security benefits? Senior Pension Fellow Ron Gebhardtsbauer says if you are going to live past 80, it’s better to wait. Gebhardtsbauer discussed this issue, as well as longevity and life expectancy, in a Baltimore Sun financial column.

Identifying flood bill concerns
Sept. 28, 2007 — An Academy Flood Insurance Subcommittee letter to congressional leaders is featured in the Insurance Journal; the letter identifies concerns with a proposal to expand the National Flood Insurance Program.

Redefining retirement
Aug. 31, 2007 — The Academy was cited as a source of life expectancy data in a USA Today feature about the phased-retirement trend, which is increasing the ranks of seniors who remain in the work force.

Social Security conundrum for women
July 18, 2007 — An Associated Press article from Forbes.com discusses the American Academy of Actuaries issue brief, Women and Social Security. The brief says that women are more reliant on Social Security, yet on average receive lower benefits than men.

What’s a boomer to do?
July 17, 2007 — Senior Pension Fellow Ron Gebhardtsbauer tells baby boomers to consider how long they (and their spouses) could live before deciding whether to take Social Security early, which permanently reduces the size of the benefit. As the Chattanooga Times Free Press reports, it may make sense to wait. (Audio also available.)

Play the Social Security Game
Think you can solve Social Security's long-term financial problems? Try our online game, recently featured in the Washington Post, on CNNMoney.com and in Newsday. It's a painless introduction to the debate over Social Security reform. (updated June 25, 2007)

OPEB position clarified
June 20, 2007 — The Fort Worth Star-Telegram published a letter to the editor from Jeffrey Petertil and Adam Reese, the co-chairpersons of the Academy’s Joint Committee on Retiree Health. The letter clarified the joint committee’s position and stated its support of accrual accounting for other post-employment benefits.

Deciding when to take Social Security benefits
June 6, 2007 — Ron Gebhardtsbauer, in a CNNMoney.com article, discusses increased longevity and other pertinent factors for Baby Boomers to consider when they're deciding whether to collect benefits from Social Security before full retirement age.

Focusing on solvency: Social Security and Medicare
April 24, 2007 — In a CNNMoney.com article, Cori Uccello, the Academy’s senior health fellow, and Ken Steiner, a member of the Academy's Social Insurance Committee, comment on the 2007 Medicare and Social Security trustees’ reports.

Employee benefits 101
April 15 and April 17, 2007 — In a Washington Post financial column aimed at new college graduates, the Academy’s senior pension fellow helps explain employee benefit packages. Ron Gebhardtsbauer also answers readers' questions during a related Post web chat.

Is a 401(k) enough?
March 19, 2007 — Future 401(k) plans may look more like traditional pension plans, according to Academy Senior Pension Fellow Ron Gebhardtsbauer in a recent Baltimore Sun article, which ran in several other newspapers including the Miami Herald.

Tracking nest eggs
March 19, 2007 — Academy Senior Pension Fellow Ron Gebhardtsbauer helps dissect a Federal Reserve report on financial assets in a recent Pensions & Investments article.

When I'm 65...
March 8, 2007 — The Academy was a source of longevity statistics in a recent USA Today article on saving for retirement.

Terrorism costs
March 5, 2007 — Bloomberg News cited the Academy as the source of an insured-loss estimate from a future chemical, nuclear, biological or radiological terrorist attack in New York City.

Benefits delivered
Feb. 28, 2007 — Academy Senior Pension Fellow Ron Gebhardtsbauer is quoted about cash balance plans in a Memphis Commercial Appeal story after a courier company changes its pension plan structure.

Secondhand smoke costs
Feb. 11, 2007 — The Academy’s estimate of the cost of secondhand- smoke exposure is cited in a column published by several major newspapers, including the Baltimore Sun and Chicago Tribune.

Pension health improves
Jan. 22, 2007 — Donald J. Segal, The Academy's vice president for pension issues, discusses improved pension funding at Fortune 100 companies in an AP article published by the San Diego Times-Union.

Don't bury DB plans yet
Dec. 25, 2006 — Academy Vice President Donald J. Segal says the Pension Protection Act and favorable court rulings may bolster the future of defined benefit plans in an op-ed in Pensions & Investments.

Actuaries in the news

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