In this Inside RGA Q&A, taken from the pages of the ReFlections newsletter, Dr. Dan Zimmerman, Senior Vice President, and Executive Medical Editor and Advisor, discusses industry changes over the past two decades, experiences from the COVID-19 pandemic, and sage advice for those embarking upon an insurance medicine career.
Dr. Adela Osman, RGA’s Head of Global Medical and ReFlections Editor, recently sat down with RGA’s Dr. Dan Zimmerman to reflect on his industry observations and views on the role of the insurance medical director. While not retiring, Dr. Zimmerman is modifying his work schedule in 2025 and embarking on a new endeavor as Editor-in-Chief of the next edition of Brackenridge’s Medical Selection of Life Risks.
I suspect every generation of insurance medical directors has seen its share of change over the years. These changes have historically reflected advancements in technology and the favorable impact on mortality and morbidity outcomes.
Without a doubt, one of the most notable developments within my career has been the incredible improvement in life expectancy for those with HIV. It’s been so uplifting to see these individuals do so well with modern anti-retroviral treatments and become eligible for life insurance cover in many markets. The effectiveness of pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) to prevent HIV infection has been equally noteworthy.
One of my other personal areas of interest has been studying and following the advances in genetics and the multiple applications in clinical medicine. While genetics remains a challenge for insurers from a regulatory point of view, the potential for genetics to improve health outcomes is now starting to be realized and appears almost limitless.
Insurance was perhaps the industry best prepared for a pandemic. We not only anticipated it, but we modeled and reserved for it. This is not to say it wasn’t difficult, but insurers were able to meet our obligations, and we helped so many people during a time of global crisis. That’s gratifying to know. Moving forward, we need to learn from the experience of the pandemic and be even more prepared for the next one – which will happen.
With regard to medical directors during the pandemic, I think most of us were viewed as more than subject matter experts. While senior management did rely on us for scientific interpretation and prognostication, we were also integrated as members of the decision leadership team at our respective companies. This has resulted in a new and broader role for insurance medical directors than had been traditionally expected.
My entry into the insurance medicine profession was quite by accident, like many others. I was introduced to it by a childhood friend, who was recruiting for a medical director role at Northwestern Mutual. At that time, I didn’t even know what an insurance medical director did! But I took the opportunity, and I never looked backed.
I went through all the usual hoops, including the traditional underwriting and claims training, which I found very challenging. But other, non-traditional opportunities arose, such as medical editing, investor relations, and executive advising. The pandemic changed the playing field and expanded the role of the medical director to include business decisioning.
And now, I’m looking forward to bringing a diverse and global team of medical experts together to update the well-known Brackenridge’s Medical Selection of Life Risks textbook in 2025. I am looking forward to this opportunity to give back and support the insurance medicine profession.
The “practice” of insurance medicine is very different than clinical medicine but can be equally rewarding and is usually less stressful.
I think the best advice is to focus on developing core skills in epidemiology and statistics and learning to apply them to defined populations while also acquiring the necessary business acumen to fully understand the insurance industry – not just the medical aspects.
It’s important to seek opportunities to learn, such as through courses offered by The American Academy of Insurance Medicine. Social networking is also key as opportunities in insurance medicine are somewhat limited and word-of-mouth and personal referrals are often the pathway to securing a position. Last, and I think most importantly, one has to have genuine passion about their work and career in order to succeed and experience true professional satisfaction. I have always loved what I do, and I am extremely grateful for that.
RGA experts are eager to engage with clients to better understand and tackle the industry’s most pressing challenges together. Contact us to learn more about RGA's capabilities, resources, and solutions.
