Wednesday, December 24, 2014

Cavalcade of Risk #224: Swan Song edition

"The Swan song is a metaphorical phrase for a final gesture, effort, or performance given just before death or retirement."
Let me be clear at the outset: the above refers to the Cav, not your humble host. When I started it back in Ought 6, my goal was to offer fellow bloggers an opportunity to share their thoughts on risk:

"The purpose of the C of R is to offer insights into the world of risk management; generally, this will be insurance-related, but that’s not a requirement. Our goal is to help folks understand what risk is, and how to manage it. It's about business and finance, of course, but it's also about risks in our everyday lives and personal relationships."

And of course, rotating hosts each edition helped to spread the load, and for those who stood up I am eternally grateful. It's been a great 8+ years.

And now, on with the show:

I'm going to lead off with David Williams and Julie Ferguson, because their blogs were among the select group included in the Cav's debut edition. This week, David writes about the challenges facing the FDA as it assesses - and attempts to minimize - cardiac risks in the evaluation of new meds.

Julie Ferguson (whose co-blogger John Coppelman also graced our first Cav) has a very clever entry: a  carnival-within-a-carnival. This one's actually a great two-fer: it's got a jolly, red-suited big-guy (Merry Christmas!!) and the most recent edition of the Health Wonk Review (a sort of sister-carnival to the CoR which Julie untiringly coordinates every other week).

Another long-time participant and host, Nina Kallen, writes about a very special kind of insurance called business interruption coverage, which helps pay an employer's overhead after a loss. Her post deals with how the courts look at how that overhead is actually calculated.

Jason Shafrin has been my favorite health care economist for as long as I can recall; he, too, has been a long-time participant and host. In this week's entry, he reinforces one of my all-time favorite memes (and one which we at InsureBlog have been expounding for many, many years): health insurance is NOT health care . Seems obvious, no? Well, it often isn't, and Jason does a great job of explaining why they shouldn't be conflated.

And speaking of long-time contributors and hosts, Claire Wilkinson is the brains behind the Insurance Information Institute’s blog, and is a powerhouse of interesting insurance info (see what I did there?). This week's post on cyber risk is quite timely (and the folks at Sony should be following her blog).

Another frequent participant is Rebecca Shafer, whose posts on worker's comp are always interesting and on-point. In her final Cav post, she writes about a new EEOC initiative regarding new interactive requirements that must be implemented from the day an employer knows there's a serious health issue. If you're an employer, don't miss this one.

Talk about a "blast from the past:" Ironman (proprietor of the Political Calculations blog) pops in with his post on how O'Care's lack of transparency is costing us taxpayers a pretty penny, and the risk that not a few of the newly-insured may face come tax time.

Bob Wilson also writes on Worker's Compensation issues, and this week's offering from his cluttered desk includes a visit from Cthulu. Okay, not really, but do try to get that image out of your head while you read his take on the tentacles of employer fraud in the WC arena.

Louise Norris has been a terrific supporter of the Cav from its earliest days (as has her husband, Jay). This week, she's gone above and beyond to write a post specifically for this final edition: Open Enrollment has been much in the news, but the new auto-renewal rules have been mostly under the radar. Louise examines the risks of not paying attention.

Occasional contributor Jason Fisher pops in this week with his informative post on some ways that diabetics (and their agents) can help themselves when applying for life insurance.

And, finally, our own final Cav contribution laments the death of Vermont's brief foray into Single-Payer health care (really!).

Thanks to all the folks who contributed to this final Cavalcade of Risk, and my heartfelt gratitude to all of those along the way who've participated and hosted. Be well!
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