AMERICAN ACADEMY OF ACTUARIES ■ SEP | OCT ■ 2016 In The Red Zone Sports and Concussions— Past, Present, Future Hiring? Ask about our Retained Search Services. www.dwsimpson.com/retained ® For 25 years, DW Simpson Global Actuarial & Analytics Recruitment has been specializing in the recruitment of Actuaries and analytical professionals. We work at all levels of experience, from Entry-Level through Fellowship, and with all disciplines including Life, Health, Pension, Property & Casualty and non-traditional areas. | www.dwsimpson.com | (800) 837-8338 | [email protected] Over 40 Years of Industry Experience EZRA PENLAND (800)580-3972 ACTUARIAL RECRUITMENT [email protected] EMAIL RESUMES TO: [email protected] See Our SALARY SURVEYS at EzraPenland.com/Salary MIDWEST USA - TEXAS - HEALTH & WELFARE ACTUARY P&C PREDICTIVE MODELING SKILLS Health and welfare consulting actuary is sought in Texas at For Position 72059, an ACAS actuary or senior property the FSA level for Position 72064. Must have 7 to 16 years and casualty actuarial analyst is sought by a Midwest USA of actuarial experience is required. Group health experi- insurer. Must have predictive modeling experience. Personal ence is a must. lines experience is a plus but not required. NEW JERSEY - SENIOR HEALTH ACTUARY NEW JERSEY - For Position 72003, our New Jersey client is searching P&C RESERVING/RISK MANAGEMENT for a senior health actuary. FSA with management experi- FCAS or ACAS reserving and risk management actuary ence is sought for this role. Must have 12+ years of health is immediately need by a New Jersey insurer for Position actuarial experience. 72032. Requires 10+ years of property and casualty actu- MIDWEST USA - RETAINED HEALTH ACTUARY arial experience. Our Retained and Exclusive Client seeks an ASA or FSA TEXAS - P&C AUTO INSURANCE ACTUARY health actuary for their Midwest USA operations for Posi- For Position 71896, a Texas auto insurer is searching for tion 69900. Reports to Chief Actuary. Requires at least an auto insurance actuary with product management expe- six years of health actuarial experience. High profile group rience. This is a senior product management role. Must have insurance rating opportunity. at least ten years of insurance and actuarial experience. ILLINOIS - SENIOR LIFE ACTUARY Can be an FCAS or an ACAS or a Senior Actuarial Analyst. For Position 80091, a senior life actuary is needed by an Actuarial credentials are not required. Illinois life insurer. Compensation up to $225K. FSA with OHIO - P&C ACAS/NEAR-ACAS ACTUARY 10+ years of experience preferred. Management experi- For Position 72204, an ACAS or near-ACAS actuary is ence required. Work on experience studies, valuation, sought by our Ohio client. Requires 3 to 8 years of prop- financial reporting, management reporting, financial fore- erty and casualty actuarial experience. Modeling skills are a casting and manage staff. definite plus. Commercial or personal lines experience ideal. SOUTHEAST USA - COLORADO - P&C COMMERCIAL LINES ACTUARY LIFE MARKETING AND PRICING For Position 71741, our Colorado client is searching for a For Position 72144, a Southeast USA insurer seeks an senior actuarial analyst or actuary (ACAS/FCAS) or prod- FSA for their just-opened life marketing and pricing actu- uct manager with commercial lines and predictive modeling ary role. Requires management experience, as well as 10+ experience. Requires at least five years of commercial lines years of life actuarial experience. experience. CONNECTICUT - LIFE INVESTMENT ACTUARY MICHIGAN - P&C ASSOCIATE ACTUARY For Position 72014, our Connecticut client seeks an ASA For Position 71829, a Michigan insurer is searching for an or near-ASA life investment actuary. Requires at least four associate insurance actuary at the ACAS level. Must have years of actuarial experience. Asset modeling experience at least five years of property and casualty actuarial experi- preferred. TAS or MG-ALFA software skills a definite ence. Pricing, enterprise risk management, capital modeling, plus. product development, reserve analysis, trend studies, fi- nancial analysis, business strategy and other assignments. THESE JOBS AND MANY MORE CAN BE FOUND AT EzraPenland.com ■ SEP | OCT ■ 2016 Features Contents COVER ILLUSTRATION BY PAUL PHILPOTT In the Red Zone Awareness of concussions and their 30 aftermath is on the rise—and nowhere is this more true than in the NFL By Michael G. Malloy The Sustainability Puzzle When is solvency important, and how 38 can plan sponsors adjust over time to maintain sustainability? By Bill Hallmark Cryonics: ‘The Best Crapshoot in Town” 46 The practice of freezing people after death with the hopes of later reviving them is riddled with question marks By Alyssa Oursler To Block a Blowout A possible partnership between the 52 actuarial and earth sciences By Roberto Gullco and José Manuel Castillo Covarrubias 2 CONTINGENCIES SEP | OCT.16 BE SURE TO VISIT OUR DIGITAL EDITION AT WWW.CONTINGENCIES.ORG. Back row (l to r): Steven Frost, Jennifer Hart, Jill Grayson, Claudine Cox, Lauren Lee, Jesse West, Front row (l to r): Bonnie Ten-Pow, Barbara Roman, Aimee Kaye, Ted Jackness, Robyn Taylor, Patty Kent. We’re at the Front We are at the forefront of the market, on the frontline with industry trends and exclusive listings, and always upfront with our clients and candidates. R ACTUARIAL CAREERS, INC.® Westchester Financial Center / 11 Martine Avenue, 9th Floor, White Plains, NY 10606 Tel: 914-285-5100 / Toll Free: 800-766-0070 / Fax: 914-285-9375 E-mail: [email protected] www.actuarialcareers.com VOL 28 | NO 5 Departments www.contingencies.org INSIDE TRACK . 66 Published by Growing Pains Eric P. Harding PRESIDENT’S MESSAGE . 88 Sustaining Our Future Tom Wildsmith PRESIDENT Tom Wildsmith LETTERS . 10 EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR COMMENTARY . 12 Mary Downs In Defense of Simplicity The problem with health insurance complexity— DIRECTOR OF COMMUNICATIONS David J. Nolan and how to solve it Kurt J. Wrobel EDITOR Eric P. Harding UP TO CODE . 18 PUBLICATIONS & MARKETING PRODUCTION MANAGER Test Your Professionalism IQ Laurie Young Allan Ryan ADVERTISING Jeff Rhodes PRESIDENTIAL PAPERS . 22 410-316-9857 The Academy and the Web of Professionalism [email protected] Part 2: Qualification Standards Tom Wildsmith DEPARTMENT EDITORS Josh Feldman POLICY BRIEFING . 26 Sam Gutterman Election 2016—Breaking Down the Positions Warren Manners Heather Jerbi Stephen Meskin Robert J. Rietz SPECIAL SECTION . 56 Tom Toce SOA Annual Meeting and Exhibit PUBLICATION DESIGN & PRODUCTION BonoTom Studio Inc. TRADECRAFT . 60 www.bonotom.com Open the Doors COMMUNICATIONS REVIEW COMMITTEE How risk exchange can help address John Moore, Chairperson the organ shortage Shawna Ackerman Gwendolyn Anderson Bob Beuerlein Bill Hallmark Jeff Johnson CRYPTIC PUZZLE . 70 Ken Kent Queen’s Gambit Mary D. Miller Tom Toce Cathy Murphy-Barron Jeffrey Schlinsog CROSSWORD . 72 Tom Wildsmith Stockholm Visitors Contingencies (ISSN 1048-9851) is published bimonthly by the American Warren Manners Academy of Actuaries, 1850 M Street, NW, Suite 300, Washington, DC 20036-5805. For subscription information and customer service, PUZZLES . 74 contact the Contingencies subscription department at the address Marbles in Boxes above or (202) 223-8196. Advertising offices: Jeff Rhodes of Network Media Partners, 410-316-9857, [email protected]. Stephen Meskin Periodicals postage paid at Washington, DC, and at additional mailing offices. END PAPER . 76 Copyright 2016. All rights reserved. This magazine may not be Sins of the Father reproduced in whole or in part without written permission of the Bob Rietz publisher. Opinions expressed in signed articles are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect official policy of the American Academy of Actuaries. Postmaster: Please send change-of-address notices for Contingencies to Contingencies, PO Box 16976, North Hollywood, CA 91615-6976. 4 CONTINGENCIES SEP | OCT.16 WWW.CONTINGENCIES.ORG • Photo credit: Getty Images The past 50 years have seen extensive research into the key concepts at the heart of the taking, transferring and pooling of risk. Thanks to this, we now have a better understanding of risk behaviour, risk markets and risk sharing. At SCOR, we have explored the scientific foundations of our industry to ensure that the unexpected does not faze us. By sharing the art and science of risk with our clients, we can face the unexpected together. scor.com Inside Track ERIC P. HARDING Growing Pains AS I WRITE THIS NOTE, THE METRO D.C. REGION is mired in a typical August heat wave. Tempera- tures have hovered near 95 for weeks, and oppressive humidity makes any trip outside unbearable. (Who decided to build the nation’s capital on top of a swamp, anyway?) These unpleasant conditions require creativity when it the issue affects athletes across many sports and at all levels. comes to managing two boisterous boys. There are only so many This feature discusses the history and current standing of the episodes of American Ninja Warrior we can watch before the concussion conundrum, and looks at how various sports are kids want to try the stunts themselves. In this heat, we forgo changing protocols to protect athletes while preserving the es- the playground and set up indoor obstacle courses—repurpos- sential nature of the sport. ing leftover wooden railings as a balance beam, using toy arrows In the pension world, the issue of solvency usually gets the to measure long jumps—so the boys can work off some energy headlines. But “The Sustainability Puzzle” (page 38) suggests (and hopefully tire themselves out, leading to an easy bedtime). that a more important metric may be sustainability—that is, can The kids love it, but my wife and I cringe watching the inevitable plan sponsors afford to pay obligations over time based on cur- trips, twists, and falls. rent assets and anticipated future revenue? This feature looks at My younger boy especially likes to test the rules of physics, the different sustainability implications faced by plans in growth throwing himself (literally) into any bodily endeavor.