Regulators Ponder LTC Model Revision

But Bill Weller, a health actuary with Omega Squared, Sedona, Ariz., warns that pooling could hurt some policyholders. If a company has one policy form that is performing well and a second that is not performing well, pooling would put the policyholders in the first form at a disadvantage, Weller says.

Annual rate certification is another topic coming up in regulators' discussions.

States using this approach require actuaries to certify that the rates applied to a block of business are sufficient to support that business.

An actuary must certify the current rate as adequate or the insurer must apply for a rate adjustment, according to Dino. Florida requires certification to avoid the possibility that insurers later will ask for very large increases, Dino says.

Regulators say they find it disturbing that some company actuaries seem to be sending in rate certifications simply because it is a requirement and do not seem to be using the certification process to assess the adequacy of rates.