Releases two new reports on disability insurance
WASHINGTON, May 14 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- In the midst of
Disability Insurance Awareness Month, America's Health Insurance Plans
(AHIP) announced a new national education campaign to promote the need for
disability income protection and highlight the value disability insurance
provides for workers, employers, and taxpayers.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20040830/AHIPLOGO )
As the centerpiece of this campaign, AHIP released two new reports on
disability income insurance, including a new study by academics at Cornell
University on the need to improve the current support system for workers
with disabilities and a survey of group disability carriers conducted by
Milliman, Inc. that examines the return-to-work programs offered by
insurers.
AHIP also launched a new website, http://www.YourIncomeAtRisk.org, to
highlight these reports and provide additional information about the need
for income protection.
"Many workers today dangerously underestimate their risk of becoming
disabled and are unprepared to weather even a short-term disability," said
Karen Ignagni, President and CEO of AHIP.
Cornell University Research
A new report prepared by researchers at Cornell University and
Mathematica Policy Research, Income Security for Workers: A Stressed
Support System in Need of Innovation, found that incomes for disabled
workers have declined by almost 15 percent compared to those without work
limitations. Public programs and other income sources only partially
replace lost earnings and many disabled workers likely experience a further
decline in living standards due an increase in other disability-related
expenses.
The report's lead author, Cornell's David C. Stapleton, Ph.D., says
that, "Under our current support system for people with disabilities, those
who do not have work limitations are enjoying the fruits of this country's
economic growth, while those who have work limitations are falling further
and further behind."
According to the report, the public safety net to assist workers with
disabilities is facing an unsustainable rise in costs due to a long-term
exodus of workers with disabilities from employment into public programs.
Moreover, the aging of the baby boom generation, rising health care costs,
and rapid growth in federal expenditures for entitlement programs will add
further pressure to an already overburdened support system.
The report points out that current public programs fail to adequately
encourage and facilitate self-sufficiency, are highly fragmented and poorly
coordinated. It outlines a series of policy approaches that would leverage
existing private-sector practices and capabilities to improve the safety
net for disabled workers. The report recommends serious consideration of
policy options that would use targeted incentives or subsidies and private
administrative capabilities to help workers return to work after disability
onset and avoid or delay becoming heavily dependent on SSDI and other
public programs.
Milliman, Inc. Return-to-Work Survey
AHIP also released a new survey of group disability carriers conducted
by Milliman, Inc. on the innovative programs insurers offer to help workers
with disabilities return-to-work.
The survey found substantial investment in rehabilitation and
return-to- work programs by group disability carriers. Annual budgets for
these programs range from $450,000 to more than $10 million. In 2005,
private disability insurers spent an average of $3,200 on each disabled
employee receiving rehabilitation and return-to-work services.
Disability insurers offer a wide range of services aimed at helping
disabled employees return to work. These services may include case
management, worksite modification, financial planning assistance, and
education and training programs.
"Return-to-work programs allow employers to retain experienced
employees while at the same time helping disabled workers gain financial
independence and go on living fulfilling and productive lives," said Robert
Beal, Principal and Consulting Actuary at Milliman, Inc.
The survey also demonstrates the success of these programs at helping
claimants return to work. In 2005, return-to-work represented 29 percent of
all claim closures and 42 percent of claim closures excluding claims closed
due to death or at the end of the maximum benefit period.
Disability Insurance Awareness Month
May has been designated Disability Insurance Awareness Month by the
Life and Health Insurance Foundation for Education (LIFE). Throughout the
month, industry leaders are working together to promote the need for
disability income protection. To learn more about these efforts, visit
http://www.life-line.org/diam.
America's Health Insurance Plans -- Providing Health Benefits to More
Than 200 Million Americans
SOURCE America's Health Insurance Plans
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