Sun Life Enhances Benefits Offering for Public Sector Groups

Sun Life’s Group Life and Accidental Death & Dismemberment (AD&D) and Long Term Disability (LTD) plans now offer more optional riders such as a Line of Duty AD&D Benefit, a Critical Burn Rider, and Health Coverage Continuance not limited to COBRA, according to a press release. The company said these enhancements are designed to meet the benefit needs and administrative practices of public sector groups that may differ from their private sector counterparts.

Specifically, according to the announcement, the following optional riders are now available with Group Life and AD&D coverage for public sector employers:

• Line of Duty Rider – pays an additional benefit if a public safety officer’s death or dismemberment occurs in the line of duty;
• Critical Burn Rider – pays a benefit to victims of accidental burns who require reconstructive surgery;
• Fatal Heart Attack or Stroke Rider – pays a benefit for public safety officers who die as a result of a heart attack or stroke suffered during non-routine, stressful, or physically strenuous duties or training; and
• Coverage for Elected Officials – allows public sector customers to include elected officials in a group plan regardless of the number of hours worked.

Sun Life’s group life plans also offer an Accelerated Death Benefit, tailored Waiver of Premium provisions, greater coverage for part-time employees, extended Leave of Absence coverage to meet teachers’ needs, and an optional Felonious Assault AD&D Rider for public safety officials and school district personnel.

Enhancements to LTD benefits for public sector employers also include:

• When the Accidental Dismemberment/Loss of Sight Rider is elected, customers receive Sun Life’s On-the-Job Assault coverage. This provides an additional six months of benefits if disability results from an assault that happens at work.
  
• The Social Security / PERS & STRS Incentive allows claimants to receive more income protection by not offsetting other disability programs – Social Security, the Public Employees Retirement System and the State Teachers Retirement System – for the first 12 months of disability coverage.
  
• Optional Health Coverage Continuance Rider helps employees pay the cost of medical and dental premiums continued under COBRA or another employer-sponsored health care program.

LTD plans include Sun Life’s Retro Disability Benefits which will retroactively pay the employee LTD benefits back to the first day the employee was deemed totally disabled, if an employee’s disability requires continuous hospitalization for 14 days or more from the onset of Total Disability. For public sector customers, Retro Disability has been enhanced to pay an additional sum if the Retro Disability results from a felonious assault.

For more on Sun Life’s public sector benefits, visit http://www.sunlife.com/us.