Health

Everyone requires access to health care at some point in life, and as Canada’s health landscape continues to evolve in terms of costs, demographics, demand and treatment options, actuaries play a key role in assisting employers and governments alike in managing their programs to support Canadians. 

Using a blend of mathematics, statistics and financial theory, actuaries working in the health industry highlight and help mitigate financial risk. They:

• establish insurance premium rates based upon reported health data;
• evaluate the cost of medical programs;
• help employers develop comprehensive benefit programs, including medical and dental; and
• ensure benefit programs are sustainable and that employees are extracting high-value benefits for the right cost.

Canadians can rely on the expertise of actuaries to provide people with adequate and financially sound health care coverage.

Health practice resources 

Global perspectives and actuarial research 

• Lessons Learned from Pandemics
  This educational paper from the International Actuarial Association offers a retrospective on how pandemics such as COVID-19, HIV/AIDS and the 1918 influenza outbreak reshaped global health responses. It provides insights for actuaries and policymakers on preparedness and risk mitigation strategies. 

Health data and analytics 

• Institute of Health Metrics and Evaluation and the global burden of disease
  This piece explores how IHME’s Global Burden of Disease study helps quantify health loss across countries and time. It emphasizes the importance of impartial data in shaping health policy and improving outcomes. 
• Canadian Individual Critical Illness Insurance Morbidity Experience Study (2012-2020)
  The fifth report from the CIA’s Morbidity Risk Research Committee, analyzing industry morbidity experience for Canadian individual critical illness insurance policies. Prepared in collaboration with SCOR, this updated version (Sept. 2024) provides key insights into health insurance trends and risk.  

Policy and governance 

• The Case for implementing an Office of the National Chief Health Actuary 
  This article advocates for the creation of a federal Chief Health Actuary role in Canada to provide unbiased actuarial advice on public health-care trends and expenditures, drawing parallels with similar roles in the U.S. and with the Canada Pension Plan and the Office of the Chief Actuary. 

Social determinants of health 

• Education and Longevity
  An insight statement from the CIA examining the correlation between education, wealth and longevity. Based on 2021 member paper by Robert Brown (FCIA), Driving Longevity through Educational Attainment – A Literature Review, it explores global disparities and the implications for social security and health-care spending.