Catastrophe Modeling for Life & Health Insurance Examining LA Wildfires Impacts: A Collection of Essays

August 2025

Authors

Syed Danish Ali, CSPA
Lauren Lee, SOA Candidate
Sathiya Livingston
Rajeshwari VS, FIA
Gregory Whittaker, FSA, FASSA

Introduction

The Society of Actuaries Research Institute (SOA) Catastrophe & Climate Strategic Research Program issued a call for essays to explore considerations for catastrophe modeling for life and health insurance companies; with a priority to highlight the recent Los Angeles, California area wildfires. The goal is to explore the impacts to insurer modeling of catastrophic events, and to help to define what constitutes a “catastrophe” while seeking to explore the best framework to cover these events and the role of life & health insurance, and actuaries, to improve catastrophe models for morbidity and mortality.

The award winners, chosen for creativity, originality, and the extent to which an idea might help promote further thought in this area, are:

Quantum Solutions for Catastrophic Complexity in Life and Health Insurance
Syed Danish Ali, CSPA

Where There’s Smoke There’s Fire: Actuarial Considerations in Catastrophe Modeling 
Lauren Lee, SOA Candidate

The Risking Heat: Catastrophe Modeling for Life and Health Insurance Amid LA’s Wildfires
Sathiya Livingston

Catastrophe Modeling for Life and Health Insurance: How It Can Be Similar and Different to Property and Casualty Insurance
Rajeshwari VS, FIA

Insurer Resilience to Minimize the Loss of Life and Health as a Result of Catastrophes
Gregory Whittaker, FSA, FASSA

Winning Essay Collection

Examining LA Wildfires Impacts: A Collection of Essays

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