Critical Point

Artificial intelligence (AI) along with low-dose CT scans hold promise for the early detection of lung cancer, but there are challenges that come with scaling up this new technology. In this episode of Critical Point, Milliman’s Bruce Pyenson is joined by Jim Mulshine, a thoracic medical oncologist who spent 25 years at the National Cancer Institute and is now with Rush Medical Center. He outlines the promise AI holds in sifting through the reams of digital information from a CT scan to efficiently evaluate results and detect a myriad of diseases. But challenges in data quality and standardization must be addressed if the tool is to be used on a national or global level.
You can read the episode transcript on our website.

The CARES Act – which stands for the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act – has sweeping implications for both defined benefit (DB) and defined contribution (DC) retirement plans in the U.S. From distribution and loan relief for qualified individuals on the DC side, to deferral and election options for single-employer plans on the DB side, the CARES Act is intended to provide fast and direct economic assistance for workers and plan sponsors across the country. On this episode of Critical Point, Charles Clark, Milliman’s Employee Benefits Research Director, and Ginny Boggs, Senior Regulatory Compliance Consultant at Milliman, discuss the ins and outs of the CARES Act and what it means for retirement plans.
You can read the episode transcript on our website.

Black lung disease presents a significant, long-term liability exposure for coal companies, risk pools, and governments – a liability complicated by climate change and its effects on the industry.  After the number of reported cases declined in the late 1990s, a recent CDC report indicates that trend has reversed and that cases of black lung in miners are the highest they've been since recordkeeping began in the early 1970s. In this episode of Critical Point, Milliman consultants Christine Fleming and Travis Grulkowski discuss what this means for companies and insurers looking to manage this risk for their employees.
You can read the episode transcript on our website.

At the heart of effective risk management is the ability to manage tail events, and the COVID-19 pandemic is raising some quite profound questions for risk practitioners in the life insurance industry. On this episode of Critical Point, Milliman consultants Anthony Dardis, Ariel Weiss, and Chloe Lau discuss enterprise risk management and emerging issues that life insurers may need to confront in the face of the global pandemic, including stress testing and operational risk.
You can read the episode transcript on our website.

The COVID-19 pandemic will have far-reaching implications for both short- and long-term healthcare costs in the U.S., as Milliman consultants Pamela Pelizzari, Stoddard Davenport, Doug Norris, and Matt Kramer discuss on this episode of Critical Point. For the past month, Milliman consultants have been building actuarial models to better understand what costs could look like for consumers, hospitals, and to the healthcare system overall. While there are more questions than answers at this early stage, our subject matter experts discuss the possibility that costs may in fact decrease in the short-term, as people avoid non-essential healthcare services.
You can read the episode transcript on our website.

Managing cyber risk in emerging markets such as South Africa comes with its own unique challenges and opportunities, as Milliman’s David Kirk and Chris Harner discuss in this episode of Critical Point. Insurers and companies are confronting varying levels of preparedness, with outstanding questions around how to best understand, measure, and quantify the cost of cyber risk and then communicate these metrics to their boards. Harner and Kirk discuss top-of-mind issues such as hardware and software challenges, the latest regulations, security concerns, and what actions insurers can consider when moving forward with managing this risk.
You can read the episode transcript on our website.

Every country has its own, unique healthcare system, but within these disparate systems there are shared approaches that cross borders and languages. This next episode of Critical Point, which is based on a series of papers by Milliman experts around the world, explores some of those commonalities and shared approaches that we see in healthcare systems globally, and tackles topics such as population health management, risk equalization, and wellness programs in different countries.
You can read the episode transcript on our website.

New trends in dental care and insurance coverage are aimed at improving the patient experience, as Milliman’s Joanne Fontana discusses on this episode of Critical Point. According to the American Dental Association, one-third of adults in the U.S. lack dental insurance, but emerging technologies such as ‘smart’ toothbrushes, teledentistry, and dental therapists are introducing new methods of care, and dental insurtech is rising to meet this changing landscape.
You can read the episode transcript on our website.

What if, in the future, homeowners had a flood risk score, like a credit score? In this episode of Critical Point, Milliman consulting actuaries Nancy Watkins and John Rollins discuss flood risk, and what flood insurance could look like in the future. They address some of the public misconceptions about flood insurance coverage, the rise of the private market, and what this market could look like decades from now.
You can read the episode transcript on our website.

The American pension plan is in flux, but not for the first time in U.S. history. In this episode of Critical Point, Milliman consulting actuaries Kelly Coffing and Becky Sielman discuss why it’s a turbulent time for retirement security in America, and what the next generation of pension plans could – and should – look like given emerging technology and the changing nature of the U.S. workforce.
You can read the episode transcript on our website.