Will they keep the "change to the same flight" and get some points back when the price goes down? Or will you have to cancel (and presumably all your points go back into your account) and then rebook the same flight at a lower point cost?

The current method is very convenient but cancel/rebook is the same net effect on points spent.

We lived with 1 year expiration pre-COVID and if you really need 1 year, buy WGA+. If you turn the money over fast enough, 6 months may be good enough.

I hope they keep their current telephone staff and not charge a fee to talk to them. Most of the time they are really good.

IMHO, it will be a major pain in the .... I book up to 3 months in advance and longer if there is an actual good sale. If expiration is six months from the time of issuance/purchase, there will be little time to use it up. And you taint new funds with the old funds.