Chief Financial Officer & Chief Actuary, Geisinger Health Plan
Kurt Wrobel is Chief Financial Officer & Chief Actuary for Geisinger Health Plan. He is responsible for budgeting, expense benchmarking, pricing, rate filings, trend analysis, forecasting, reserving, data management, analytics for all product lines, and provides leadership in the development of strategic initiatives. Kurt serves as liaison between finance and all departments within Geisinger Health Plan as well as the Geisinger Health System.
Mr. Wrobel joined the Health Plan in February, 2014. Most recently, he was a consultant for Milliman in their Brookfield, Wisconsin office. Mr. Wrobel was Vice President, Large group Pricing/Underwriting and Chief Underwriting Officer for Humana and Vice President, Key Accounts Underwriting at United Healthcare/PacifiCare Health Systems. He also held an actuarial position at HealthMarket, Inc.
He obtained his BA in Economics from University of California, Los Angeles in 1991, MS in Economics from University of Wisconsin, Madison in 1994, and MBA in Healthcare Management from The Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania in 2000. Mr. Wrobel is a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries, a member of the American Academy of Actuaries, as well as author of several actuarial articles on health care reform, risk management, and payment reform.
PUBLICATIONS
“Whats the deal with open enrollment? An Actuary Explains”, Penn Live, December, 2017
“Health Insurance and Hospital Financing at a Glance”, HFM Magazine - Healthcare Matters, October 2017
“Too Much Data: Why analytic competition is a problem…and what we can do about it”, Contingencies, Jul/Aug 17
“Value-Based Payment – from a Different Perspective”, HFM Magazine – Healthcare Matters, March 2017
“On Individual Health Insurance Reform, Actuarial Details Matter”, Forbes, January, 2017
"Deciding What to Research: How to Spot and Avoid Bias", Predictive Analytics and Futurism, December, 2016
"Predictive Analytics: An Alternative Perspective", Predictive Analytics and Futurism, December, 2015
"Deciding What to Research: How to Spot and Avoid Bias", Contingencies, November/December, 2015
“Beyond Big Data: How to Use Wisdom and Simple Data Analysis to Make Decisions”, Contingencies, June/July, 2015
“The Truth Seeking Debate”, The Actuary, June/July 2015
“The Individual Market and ACA Products: Starting from First Actuarial Principals”, Health Watch, Summer 2015
“Provider Payment Programs: Getting the Incentives Right”, Contingencies, March/April, 2015
“The Individual ACA Market – What’s Next”, The Actuary, February/March 2015
“A Comparison between the ACA Exchanges and Medicare Risk Adjustment Programs”, Health Watch, January 2015
“The ACA Cost Predictability Question”, The Actuary, October/November 2014
“The ACA Exchange and Medicare Part D: A Comparison of Financial Risk”, Health Watch, October 2014
"Risk Management and the Power of Simplicity”, The Actuary, April/May2014
"The Actuarial Profession and Complex Models: Knowing the Limits of Our Knowledge", Health Watch, January, 2012
"Moneyball and the Actuarial Profession", Health Section News, April, 2004
"Evaluating Risk: Global Fees and Episodic Care", The Physician Executive, January/February, 2003
"Can the Direct Capitation Model work", The Physician Executive, January/February, 2002
"The Economics of Health Insurance Plan Design", Managed Care Quarterly, Summer, 2002
SPEAKING ENGAGEMENTS
“Propel the Shift to Value-Based Care: The Forefront of Financial sustainability, cost Reduction and Outcomes Improvement”, World Healthcare Congress, May, 2017
“Maintain the Commitment to the Individual: Succeeding in an Unstable Public Marketplace”, World Healthcare Congress, May, 2017
“Health Insurance Finance”, The Wharton School of Business, February 2017
"Addressing Challenges for the Small Insurance Company", SOA webcast, November 18, 2015
“The Long Term Sustainability of the ACA Exchanges”, SOA Meeting, Schaumberg, IL, March, 2015
“The ACA Exchanges and the Individual and Small Group Markets”, The Wharton School of the
Business, February, 2015; Cornell, October, 2014; Penn State University, November, 2014
“Structure and Economics of the Managed Care Industry”, The Wharton School of Business, March, 2014
"Behavioral Economics and Pricing", SOA Health Meeting, June, 2012
“The Actuarial Profession and Complex Models” – SOA Podcast
"Fundamental Issues with Health Insurance - Does Health Care Reform Address Them?, SOA Annual Meeting, October 18, 2011
"Provider Compensation Strategies: Episode Contracting", SOA Webinar, January 27, 2011
"Radical Health Plan Changes Ignited by the Internet", SOA New Orleans Annual Meeting,
October 22, 2001
"The Economics of Health Insurance Plan Designs", SOA Spring Meeting, May 31, 2001
“Developing Risk Adjusted Capitation Models for HIV/AIDS”, AIC Conference Speaker on State Medicaid Payment Policy
Geisinger Health Plan refers collectively to Geisinger Health Plan, Geisinger Quality Options, Inc., and Geisinger Indemnity Insurance Company.