Life & Health
What is Life and Health Insurance?
Life and Health insurance is an area of Business Insurance dedicated to providing coverage in the event somebody dies (Life) or has medically related cost (Health). Generally these are referred to as “Employee Benefits.” These are different than Property Casualty in that they cover your physical person as opposed to your possessions. Each area, Life or Health, has different coverage’s available to meet specific needs you may have.
Life Insurance
Employer Life insurance plans are typically owned by the employer and employees are allowed to join the plan based on rules of eligibility. Employer based coverage is perhaps the easiest way to obtain life insurance because it is usually guaranteed issue for some amount and may not require more than your agreement to enroll for you to get the coverage.
Employer plans may offer coverage under several schedules each of which must adhere to legal qualifications to retain the taxability as an employee benefit.
In addition to the employer provided plan the employer may elect to offer “Voluntary” additional coverage. In this case the employees are allowed to request additional coverage that meets their specific needs. These plans will frequently also include the spouse and children.
In addition to the group term coverage offered by employers there are specialized life plans designed to meet business needs:
- Buy Sell funding
- Deferred compensation
- Prefunded company purchase
- Key man coverage
- Loan guarantees
It is essential you secure the services of a qualified agent/broker for these life insurance applications. Each of this requires an understanding of contracts and the myriad complications that can result from using non qualified personnel or the wrong policy format.
Health Insurance
In an employer setting there are many insurance coverages that come under the heading “Health insurance”. A few of these are:
- Medical – coverage for covered medical conditions
- Disability – coverage to replace lost income in the event of disability causing loss of the ability to work
- Dental – coverage for dental related expenses
- Vision – coverage for vision related expenses
- EAP – Employee Assistance program
- Voluntary (work site) coverage – benefits offered to employees on a voluntary basis and usually paid for by the employee ((cancer, critical illness, accident only, hospital indemnity, limited benefit medical, disability, dental, life, long term care)
Health insurance contracts are specific in what they cover and what is excluded. It is very important that employers utilize competent advisors for these areas as they carry important tax benefits as well as prohibitive penalties if not properly implemented.
