Special Needs Insurance: More Stability for a Growing Family's Budget

Objective.— To propose an insurance product called special needs insurance. The insurance will pay parents a lump sum up to $100,000 if they have a child that is born with or develops a special needs condition such as Down syndrome, cerebral palsy or autism. Background.— Raising a child is expensive; raising a child with a special need can be hundreds of thousands of dollars more expensive. These additional costs include direct costs that are not covered by health insurance and indirect costs such as the loss of earnings when a working parent must tend to a special needs child. Method.— We analyze a gamut of birth and early childhood disabilities, both physical and cognitive, from the medico-actuarial perspective. We describe each condition using relevant medical literature and calculate prevalence rates from epidemiological studies (appendix A1-A15). After accounting for multiple births, we develop a final premium. Results.— We find that physical impairments are sufficiently well understood to guarantee a fixed payout, whereas cognitive impairments such as autism are less understood, and so for these we propose a cognitive fund that does not guarantee a fixed payout. We find that an average single premium of $4,600 allows the insurer to profitably pay out the proposed benefits. Conclusions.— Raising a special needs child can put a significant strain on the affected family's budget. We propose an insurance product that provides relief through a large lump sum payout. Although no new insurance product can be guaranteed success, our analysis of this product gives an interested insurer reasonable justification to take on this new risk.

Projection of Impaired Life Expectancy for Individuals in the United Kingdom Using Estimated Excess Death Rates

We have recently constructed tables of the estimated life expectancies of impaired lives on the basis of mortality ratios and the cohort life expectancy tables given in the 8th edition of the Ogden Tables, which are derived from the ONS 2018-based population projections for the United Kingdom.1,2 The life expectancy of impaired lives may also be estimated using excess death rates. In this paper, we give tables of life expectancies for impaired lives using a range of excess death rates for males and females from age 0 to age 100. As both mortality ratios and excess death rates are widely used in medical and legal settings, it is hoped that these additional tables of life expectancies will be of practical value.

Projection of Impaired Life Expectancy in Individuals in the United Kingdom Using Mortality Ratios

Projections of life expectancy are widely used in medicine, actuarial practice, and in the medicolegal and insurance fields. For individuals considered to have average future survival, nationally-derived life expectancy tables are available, referred to as the Ogden Tables. In the United Kingdom, updated tables (the 8th edition) were published in July 2020. We have calculated impaired projected life expectancies for the United Kingdom based on age and gender, derived from the 8th edition of the Ogden Tables together with various assumed lifelong mortality ratios.

Navigating a Pandemic: The Unique Role of the Medical Director

The sudden emergence of the COVID-19 pandemic in early 2020 presented a unique challenge for medical directors of life insurance companies. Company leadership required quick answers about many issues, but two in particular: 1) the magnitude of the pandemic's impact on the insured lives portfolio and 2) the underwriting of new applicants during a pandemic. This article will describe the experiences of a global team of reinsurance medical directors during a pandemic. It may also serve to provide guidance for medical directors facing a similar challenge in the future.

COVID-19 and Mental Health: Should We Expect an Increase in Disability?

Disability due to mental health disorders has been increasing in many countries over the past years. The COVID-19 pandemic may worsen this trend because of 3 different, and at times overlapping, pathways. This article describes each pathway, and by drawing on the experience of previous coronavirus epidemics and recent recessions, attempts to estimate the likelihood that claims due to mental health disorders will increase.

Long COVID - An Early Perspective

A new syndrome called “Long COVID” has emerged amongst the survivors of acute COVID-19 infection. Its protracted and debilitating nature will almost certainly result in many short and long-term disability claims. Insurers need to understand the nature of Long COVID, including its definition, its prevalence, its natural history, and underlying risk factors. This article will summarize current knowledge of Long COVID and provide a perspective on its evolution and its impact.

Insurance and Epidemics: SARS, West Nile Virus and Nipah Virus

Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) reminds us that sudden disease emergence is a permanent part of our world—and should be anticipated in our planning. Historically the emergence of new diseases has had little or no impact beyond a small, localized cluster of infections. However, given just the right conditions, a highly virulent pathogen can suddenly spread across time and space with massive consequences, as has occurred on several occasions in human history. In the wake of the SARS outbreak, we are now forced to confront the unpleasant fact that human activities are increasing the frequency and severity of these kinds of emergences. The idea of more frequent biological ‘‘invasions’’ with economic and societal impacts comparable to SARS, presents stakeholders in the global economy with unprecedented new risks, challenges and even opportunities. As a major contributor to economic stability, the insurance industry must follow these trends very closely and develop scenarios to anticipate these events.