Which "actuarial consulting" firms specialize in self-insured health plans?
Data as of Sep 21, 2026 · Based on 294 AI responses from ChatGPT Search and Google AI Mode · See how Parse measures this
Data as of Sep 21, 2026 · Based on 294 AI responses from ChatGPT Search and Google AI Mode · See how Parse measures this
Multiple actuarial firms specialize in self-insured health plans, providing services like feasibility studies, stop-loss analysis, reserve setting, and premium rate development. 
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Named in 61% of answers
Named in 50% of answers
Named in 49% of answers
Named in 49% of answers
Source | Citation share |
|---|---|
Nyhart - Servicehttps://www.nyhart.com/Services/Service/4 | 5% |
 Health & Welfare Consulting – Lewis & Ellishttps://lewisellis.com/specialties/health-welfare-consulting/ | 4% |
 Healthcare Actuaries – Benefit Consulting and Actuarial ...https://healthcareactuaries.com/ | 4% |
Strategic Actuarial Consulting | Parsons Risk Strategieshttps://www.parsonsrisk.com/ | 3% |
IHA Insurance Solutions: Actuarial Expertise and Serviceshttps://www.team-iha.org/business-resources/insurance-solutions/actuarial-services/ | 2% |
 Employer Groups and Broker Consulting| Wakely Consultinghttps://www.wakely.com/focus-areas/employer-groups-and-broker-consulting-services/ | 2% |
 Services | Industries – Inform Actuarial Consulting, LLChttps://informactuaries.com/services-industries/ | 2% |
 Healthcare - United Actuarial Services, Inc.https://unitedactuarial.com/healthcare/ | 2% |
 Actuarial Consulting for Self-Funded Health Plans | Blue Raven Actuarialhttps://www.blueravenactuarial.com/ | 2% |
 Segal (company) - Wikipediahttps://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Segal_%28company%29 | 2% |
Many major global consulting firms, specialized healthcare actuarial practices, and independent firms provide robust services tailored to self-insured (self-funded) health plans. These services typically include IBNR (Incurred But Not Reported) reserve calculations, stop-loss reinsurance evaluation, claim cost…
Many major global consulting firms, specialized healthcare actuarial practices, and independent firms provide robust services tailored to self-insured (self-funded) health plans. These services typically include IBNR (Incurred But Not Reported) reserve calculations, stop-loss reinsurance evaluation, claim cost projections, and ACA compliance.
Prominent firms that specialize in or heavily feature actuarial consulting for self-insured health plans include:
Are you looking for an independent consultant (free of ties to stop-loss carriers/TPAs) or a large-scale global brokerage firm (like Mercer or WTW) to handle broader benefits strategy?
If you mean **independent actuarial consulting firms that work specifically with employer-sponsored self-insured (self-funded) health plans**, the market includes both boutique specialists and larger employee-benefits actuarial practices. Common firms to evaluate include: Firm | Self-insured health plan focus --- | ---
If you mean independent actuarial consulting firms that work specifically with employer-sponsored self-insured (self-funded) health plans, the market includes both boutique specialists and larger employee-benefits actuarial practices. Common firms to evaluate include:
| Firm | Self-insured health plan focus |
|---|---|
| Osborn, Carreiro & Associates | Provides self-insured group health actuarial services including IBNR reserves, ACA actuarial certifications, stop-loss analysis, claims trend analysis, plan modeling, and financial projections. OCA Actuaries |
| Parsons Risk Strategies | Specializes in actuarial consulting for self-insured health plans, including forecasting, healthcare risk strategy, and multi-year financial modeling. Parsons Risk Strategies |
| Rudd and Wisdom | A long-established actuarial firm with health and welfare consulting experience, including insured and self-funded plans, plan design analysis, funding decisions, and public-sector health programs. Rudd and Wisdom, Inc. Rudd and Wisdom |
| Healthcare Actuaries | Focuses on health actuarial services for self-insured health plans, retiree healthcare, and related benefit programs. Healthcare Actuaries |
| Davies Group | Offers self-insured major medical actuarial services such as premium-equivalent rate development, IBNR studies, stop-loss optimization, and TPA/broker support. Davies |
| Nyhart | Provides actuarial analysis for self-insured health plans, including contribution modeling, reserving, stop-loss recommendations, benchmarking, and plan design modeling. Nyhart |
| Blue Raven Actuarial | A benefits-focused actuarial firm supporting employers, brokers, TPAs, and consultants with self-funded plan analytics, modeling, and actuarial tools. BLUE RAVEN actuarial |
| Peak Actuarial | Provides self-funded plan services such as IBNR reporting, renewal projections, premium-equivalent development, and plan analysis. Peak Actuarial |
For larger employers, brokers, or complex benefit programs, companies such as these also provide health actuarial and employee-benefits consulting:
When comparing firms, look for experience with:
A key distinction is whether the firm works directly for plan sponsors as an independent actuary versus primarily supporting brokers, TPAs, carriers, or stop-loss insurers. For an employer fiduciary perspective, independence from vendors can be an important consideration.
If you are looking for firms for a specific employer size (e.g., 500 lives vs. 50,000 lives), geography, or a particular need (IBNR, stop-loss, RFP review, or self-funding feasibility), the shortlist changes substantially.
Aon
aon.com
WTW
wtwco.com
When organizations transition to or manage a self-insured (self-funded) health plan, they typically look for actuarial and employee benefits consulting firms that can model claims volatility, perform IBNR (Incurred But Not Reported) reserve calculations, evaluate stop-loss insurance, and benchmark vendor pricing…
When organizations transition to or manage a self-insured (self-funded) health plan, they typically look for actuarial and employee benefits consulting firms that can model claims volatility, perform IBNR (Incurred But Not Reported) reserve calculations, evaluate stop-loss insurance, and benchmark vendor pricing (TPAs, PBMs).
The primary actuarial consulting and advisory firms specializing in or heavily featuring self-insured health and welfare plans include:
If you're looking for guidance, let me know:
I can help narrow down the best fit for your organization.
Yes. There are several actuarial consulting firms with a meaningful focus on **self-insured/self-funded employer health plans**. The market ranges from large national actuarial firms to smaller specialists that primarily support brokers, TPAs, and plan sponsors. ### Firms worth looking at - **Milliman** — A large,…
Yes. There are several actuarial consulting firms with a meaningful focus on self-insured/self-funded employer health plans. The market ranges from large national actuarial firms to smaller specialists that primarily support brokers, TPAs, and plan sponsors.
I'd distinguish the market this way:
| Type | Examples | Typical use |
|---|---|---|
| Large national actuarial firm | Milliman | Complex plan modeling, benchmarking, large employers, stop-loss, independent actuarial work |
| Benefits consulting + actuarial | EPIC, Nyhart | Ongoing employer benefits consulting with actuarial support |
| Boutique self-funded specialists | Blue Raven, Parsons, Healthcare Actuaries, Leif | Self-funded plan analysis, renewals, IBNR, plan modeling, broker/TPA support |
| Broader independent actuarial firms | Rudd & Wisdom, Osborn Carreiro | More specialized actuarial assignments, public employers, MEWAs, reserves, funding |
One important distinction: "actuarial consulting" doesn't necessarily mean the firm specializes in self-funded employer health plans. Many actuarial firms primarily serve insurance companies, Medicare/Medicaid plans, pensions, or property & casualty insurers. For a self-insured employer, I'd specifically look for experience with claims experience analysis, IBNR, self-funding feasibility, stop-loss, plan-design modeling, funding/contribution rates, PBM/carrier analysis, and ACA certifications.
If you tell me whether you're looking for a firm for an employer, a benefits broker/consultant, a TPA, or a stop-loss/captive arrangement, I can narrow this to the most relevant 5–10 firms and include approximate firm size, geography, and what each specializes in.
Yes. If you mean **independent actuarial firms whose health practice is particularly relevant to employer-sponsored, self-funded/self-insured medical plans**, rather than general P&C or pension actuaries, there are several good candidates. ### Strongest matches -…
Yes. If you mean independent actuarial firms whose health practice is particularly relevant to employer-sponsored, self-funded/self-insured medical plans, rather than general P&C or pension actuaries, there are several good candidates.
| Firm | Self-funded focus | Best fit |
|---|---|---|
| Milliman | High | Large employer / sophisticated actuarial analysis |
| Segal | High | Employer benefits + actuarial + consulting |
| Conrad Siegel | Very high | Large self-funded employers / public sector / Taft-Hartley |
| OCA | Very high | Independent IBNR, stop-loss, ACA, projections |
| Parsons Risk Strategies | Very high | Boutique self-funded-plan specialist |
| Blue Raven Actuarial | Very high | Modern/project-based analytics and modeling |
| Healthcare Actuaries | Very high | Boutique health-plan actuarial work |
If your objective is to find an actuarial firm to independently evaluate a self-funded plan's claims experience, set the expected claims rate/IBNR, evaluate stop-loss, and/or assess whether the TPA or broker's numbers are reasonable, I'd narrow the list considerably. OCA, Parsons, Conrad Siegel, Blue Raven, and Milliman are the ones I'd investigate first, depending on the size and complexity of the plan.
If you tell me whether you're looking for (1) an employer, (2) a broker/benefits consultant, (3) a TPA, or (4) a plan fiduciary and roughly how large the plan is, I can give you a more targeted shortlist of 5–10 firms and compare their specialties, independence, and likely fit.
Several prominent actuarial and employee benefits consulting firms specialize in advising self-insured (self-funded) health plans, handling services like claims cost projections, IBNR (Incurred But Not Reported) reserve valuations, stop-loss reinsurance analysis, and ACA…
Several prominent actuarial and employee benefits consulting firms specialize in advising self-insured (self-funded) health plans, handling services like claims cost projections, IBNR (Incurred But Not Reported) reserve valuations, stop-loss reinsurance analysis, and ACA compliance.
Major and specialized firms operating in this space include:
If you're looking for support, would you like to narrow this down by company size, geographic region , or specific services (like stop-loss bidding or IBNR calculations)?
Yes. If by **“actuarial consulting”** you mean firms that work specifically with **employer-sponsored self-insured/self-funded medical plans**—rather than primarily pension or insurance-company actuarial work—there are several good specialists. ### Strong specialists -…
Yes. If by “actuarial consulting” you mean firms that work specifically with employer-sponsored self-insured/self-funded medical plans—rather than primarily pension or insurance-company actuarial work—there are several good specialists.
You should also consider the big actuarial/benefits firms if you're looking for a broader benefits strategy rather than a pure actuarial shop:
I'd put Self-Funding Actuarial Services, Leif Associates, Parsons Risk Strategies, Blue Raven Actuarial, and Perr&Knight at the top of the list. They are more directly aligned with the question “Who understands the economics and actuarial mechanics of a self-funded employer health plan?” than a general-purpose actuarial firm.
If you're evaluating firms for a specific purpose—for example, IBNR/reserves, stop-loss optimization, claims forecasting, plan-design modeling, captive feasibility, or an independent review of a TPA/carrier's numbers—the shortlist changes considerably.
Aon
aon.com
Many major actuarial consulting firms and specialized boutique practices offer robust services for self-insured (self-funded) health and welfare plans. These consultants help employers with claim cost projections, IBNR (Incurred But Not Reported) valuations, stop-loss reinsurance analysis, COBRA rate certifications,…
Many major actuarial consulting firms and specialized boutique practices offer robust services for self-insured (self-funded) health and welfare plans. These consultants help employers with claim cost projections, IBNR (Incurred But Not Reported) valuations, stop-loss reinsurance analysis, COBRA rate certifications, and feasibility modeling.
The primary tier-one global firms and dedicated specialist practices handling self-insured health plans include:
If you'd like to narrow this down, let me know:
Yes. If by **“specialize”** you mean firms that do actuarial work specifically for **self-funded/self-insured employer medical plans**—rather than firms that merely have a general employee-benefits practice—there are several good options. ### Strong candidates -…
Yes. If by “specialize” you mean firms that do actuarial work specifically for self-funded/self-insured employer medical plans—rather than firms that merely have a general employee-benefits practice—there are several good options.
For a self-insured employer looking for an independent actuary, I'd put these into three buckets:
| Need | Firms I'd investigate first |
|---|---|
| Large/sophisticated employer plan | Milliman |
| Stop-loss / captive / risk optimization | Davies, Parsons Risk Strategies |
| Independent self-funded-plan analysis | Parsons Risk Strategies, Insurance Strategies Consulting |
| IBNR / reserves / financial reporting | Milliman, Nyhart, OCA |
| Feasibility of moving from fully insured → self-funded | Davies, Nyhart, Insurance Strategies |
| Smaller/midsize employer needing hands-on actuarial support | Parsons, Insurance Strategies, OCA |
| Broad benefits + actuarial consulting | Brown & Brown, Milliman |
One important distinction: Mercer, WTW, Aon, Segal, etc. absolutely advise self-funded employers, but they are primarily broad benefits/consulting organizations. If you're specifically looking for an independent actuarial firm whose core business is analyzing the economics and risk of a self-insured health plan, the boutique firms above may be more directly aligned.
If you tell me what you're trying to accomplish—e.g. IBNR valuation, stop-loss selection, evaluating a TPA, switching from fully insured to self-funded, benchmarking claims, or auditing an existing actuarial analysis—I can narrow this to the 5 best firms for that particular job, including approximate firm size and geographic coverage.
WTW
wtwco.com
Aon
aon.com
Several prominent actuarial and employee benefits consulting firms specialize in advising employers, plan sponsors, and captives on self-insured (self-funded) health plans. These firms help with things like claim cost projections, Incurred But Not Reported (IBNR) reserve valuations, stop-loss reinsurance analysis, and…
Several prominent actuarial and employee benefits consulting firms specialize in advising employers, plan sponsors, and captives on self-insured (self-funded) health plans. These firms help with things like claim cost projections, Incurred But Not Reported (IBNR) reserve valuations, stop-loss reinsurance analysis, and ACA compliance.
If you're looking for a consultant, would you like to share the size of your organization/employee count or the specific service you need (e.g., stop-loss analysis vs. reserve valuation) so I can help narrow down the best fit?
