Developing a Framework for Financial Achievability of Department of Transportation Research and Development Projects

The article of record as published may be found at http://dx.doi.org/10.3141/2480-02A financial analysis framework was developed to allow departments of transportation to assess research projects better. The framework recognizes that the research process contains multiple stages of decision making, and the framework details the information needed at each stage. The framework is described as it applies to each step in the research process: identifying potential research projects, evaluating research proposals, monitoring ongoing research projects, and evaluating final research reports. The framework also considers the decision to implement the research and its potential effects on employees. The application of the framework is illustrated with several Florida Department of Transportation research projects that involve the development of a multipurpose survey vehicle for evaluation of Florida roadways. This illustration allows for an explanation of each step in the framework with actual data from research reports and other internal or external sources. Although the framework is flexible and can be adapted for use in evaluating different types of projects, some judgment will be required when the specific inputs to the model are considered. Successful implementation of the framework will require focused data collection with emphasis on identifying the potential net benefits of research projects

The Impact of Market Power and Economies of Scale on Large Group Health Insurer Profitability

Following the passage of the Affordable Care Act in 2010, financial reports by commercial health insurers include more detailed information on a Supplemental Health Care Exhibit. Using these data, we analyze the financial performance of all insurers offering large group health insurance aggregated to the group level from 2010 to 2018. The group-level underwriting gains of the largest three insurers were significantly higher and significantly less variable than those of all other insurers. In a multivariate analysis using ordinary least squares, we compare per-member premiums, claims, and operating expenses of the three largest insurers to those of all others. We find no statistically significant difference in premiums or claims per member. However, we find that the largest three insurers have significantly lower general and administrative expenses than all other large group insurers. While our findings indicate that the top three insurers have achieved economies of scale, their cost savings result in higher insurer profits rather than lower consumer premiums. The importance of market share as a driver for insurer-level profitability may lead to a future decline in competition, an increase in market concentration, or both if underperforming insurers with lower market share begin to exit the market

Trends in life insurance demand and lapse literature

The article analyzes the interconnectedness and gaps between twointerrelated streams of literature, evolving in different time periods, by employingbibliometric tools. The research on the factors of life insurance demand started inthe late 1960s and early 1970s, while more intensive works on the drivers of lapsesin life insurance appeared during the 2000s. We map the research fields using ourown criteria to create clusters and visualize the flow of knowledge within andbetween the clusters employing citation network analysis (CNA). We contribute byproviding the most comprehensive systematic review that integrates both fields,additionally encapsulating studies on the demand for policy loans. The articledetects the most important drivers of life insurance policyholder behavior duringhis/her lifetime and opens new horizons for future research

The net effects of medical malpractice tort reform on health insurance losses: the Texas experience

In this paper, we examine the influence of medical malpractice tort reform on the level of private health insurance company losses incurred. We employ a natural experiment framework centered on a series of tort reform measures enacted in Texas in 2003 that drastically altered the medical malpractice environment in the state. The results of a difference-in-differences analysis using a variety of comparison states, as well as a difference-in-difference-in-differences analysis, indicate that ameliorating medical malpractice risk has little effect on health insurance losses incurred by private health insurers