Aflac Broadens New York Employers' Insurance Options With Group Accident Plan

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Nov 14, 2012, 08:00 ET

ALBANY, N.Y., Nov. 14, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Aflac, the No. 1 provider of voluntary and guaranteed-renewable insurance in the United States, announced it now offers its group accident insurance plan¹ to employers in the state of New York. The new voluntary group plan follows the introduction of Aflac's group Hospital Indemnity plan in New York — giving employers an even wider range of insurance options and complementing Aflac's existing roster of individual products.

The Aflac group accident voluntary insurance plan provides employers in New York with a guaranteed-issue benefits solution to help employees offset health care expenses that aren't covered by major medical insurance.

Employers can choose from four coverage options of the group accident insurance plan, which includes an accidental-death and -dismemberment benefit feature. The benefits include the following:

Hospital Admission* – Plan pays a cash benefit of $1,000 (per calendar year) when an employee is injured in a covered accident and the injury requires hospital confinement within six months of the covered accident.
Hospital Confinement* – Plan pays a cash benefit of $160 per day when an employee is injured in a covered accident and the injury requires hospital confinement to a hospital within 90 days of the covered accident. This benefit is payable once per day, per hospital confinement.
Hospital Intensive Care* – Plan pays a cash benefit of $400 per day for up to 30 days per covered accident.
Ambulance* – Plan pays a cash benefit up to $700 for an ambulance ride and up to $2,000 for an air ambulance ride (depending on the plan selected) if an insured requires transportation by a professional ambulance service to a hospital as a result of an injury in a covered accident.
Family Lodging* – Plan pays a cash benefit of $100 per day, up to 30 days per covered accident, while the insured is confined to the hospital more than 100 miles from the employee's residence.

According to the National Safety Council, an average of 4,440 injuries requiring medical consultation occur every hour with falls representing the leading cause of injury-related emergency visits. In addition, on average, a person suffers a medically-consulted injury at work every six seconds.²

Such accidents can have detrimental financial impact on a family. For instance, the average cost of a motor-vehicle related crash is more than $1.4 million in cases involving a death and more than $70,200 in cases involving a nonfatal disabling injury.³ The costs include wage and productivity losses, medical expenses, administrative expenses, motor-vehicle damage and employers' uninsured costs.

"Americans are overly optimistic when it comes to thinking they won't experience an accident, and consequently, most families don't budget for the associated costs," John Harmeling, senior vice president of Worksite Marketing at Aflac. "The Aflac group accident insurance plan provides another benefit for employers in New York to help their workers stay ahead of the medical and out-of-pocket expenses that add up so quickly after an accidental injury — not just for emergency treatment, hospital stays and medical exams, but for other expenses such as ambulance transportation or lodging."

Many Americans are in denial about the likelihood of being in an accident. The 2012 Aflac WorkForces Report revealed nearly two-thirds of workers (66 percent) think it's not very or not at all likely they or a family member will be involved in a car accident in the next 12 months. Moreover, medically consulted motor-vehicle injuries for the first seven months of 2012 are estimated to be about 2.1 million, an increase of 11 percent from 2011.⁴

Additionally, American workers also admit that they don't have a financial plan in place to pay for an unexpected injury or illness. In fact, a mere eight percent of American workers strongly agree their families would be financially prepared in the event of an unexpected emergency, according to the Aflac study. Further, more than one-quarter (28 percent) have less than $500 to pay for out-of-pocket medical expenses associated with a serious illness or accident.

The Aflac group accident insurance plan is a part of Aflac's continued commitment to offer employers in New York benefits solutions that are hassle-free, easy to administer without adding benefits costs to the employer.

Product eligibility and options include the following:

Guaranteed-issue – Coverage is guaranteed-issue. No medical underwriting is required for eligible employees to qualify for the plan.
Flexible options – Employers can choose one of four coverage options that best meet the needs of their employees.
No age bands – Age bands are eliminated, allowing a uniform rate for all employees.

"The accident plan enables employers to offer their employees added financial protection against expenses most have never thought about before — throughout the many stages of care, from initial emergency treatment or hospitalization, to follow-up treatments and physical therapy," said Harmeling.

For more information, visit aflac.com/business or follow @aflac on Twitter.

ABOUT AFLAC
When a policyholder gets sick or hurt, Aflac pays cash benefits fast. For more than 55 years, Aflac insurance policies have given policyholders the opportunity to focus on recovery, not financial stress. In the United States, Aflac is the number one provider of guaranteed-renewable insurance. In Japan, Aflac is the number one life insurance company in terms of individual policies in force. Aflac individual and group insurance products provide protection to more than 50 million people worldwide. For six consecutive years, Aflac has been recognized by Ethisphere magazine as one of the World's Most Ethical Companies. In 2012, FORTUNE magazine recognized Aflac as one of the 100 Best Companies to Work For in America for the 14th consecutive year. Also, FORTUNE magazine included Aflac on its list of Most Admired Companies for the 11th time in 2012. Aflac Incorporated is a Fortune 500 company listed on the New York Stock Exchange under the symbol AFL. To find out more about Aflac, visit aflac.com or espanol.aflac.com.

¹   For groups sitused in New York, group coverage is underwritten by American Family Life Assurance Company of New York, and customer service is administered by Continental American Insurance Company, 2801 Devine Street, Columbia, South Carolina 29205. This piece is subject to the terms, conditions, and limitations of Policy Form Series AF7700NY.
²   Injury Facts, 2011 Edition, National Safety Council.
³   Statistics Department, National Safety Council, and Children's Safety Network, Economics and Insurance Resource Center, Pacific Institute for Research and Evaluation.
⁴Statistics Department, National Safety Council Motor Vehicle Fatality Estimates, July 2012.
*Certain stipulations will apply.

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