Aflac enhances its GSTD policy allowing businesses to offer competitive, quality benefits to employees

Managing the cost of employee benefits is one of the greatest challenges businesses face today. In fact, recent Aflac surveys of business owners found that 62 percent of respondents said it's more difficult than a year ago to offer strong benefits packages. At the same time, 60 percent of respondents said the productivity of their workforce declines when employees are dealing with an illness or accident in the family.

In response to changing market demands and employers' needs, Aflac has enhanced its group short-term disability (GSTD) policy, allowing businesses to offer competitive, quality benefits to employees, at no direct cost to the company. Aflac's GSTD features include:

• Guaranteed-issue: The monthly benefit has been increased to a maximum of $3,000 for those who qualify, subject to certain requirements. Full underwriting is not necessary.

• Credit for pre-existing conditions: If the GSTD policy replaces other group short-term disability coverage, employees receive credit toward Aflac's pre-existing conditions limitation clause. This is based on the number of months the previous policy was in place for similar benefit amounts.

• Low participation requirement: The participation requirement is 30 percent, based on a minimum of 100 employees.

• Portability: Employees have the option to obtain an individually-owned short-term disability insurance policy if they change employers, subject to certain requirements.

Aflac's GSTD policy is an effective way to provide income protection to employees through cash benefits if they're unable to work due to a covered illness or off-the-job injury, and helps to attract and retain a productive workforce.

"Today's rising health care costs and slowing economic growth have made it increasingly difficult for employers to offer strong employee benefits packages," said Karen Riedel, second vice president, director of Aflac Product Marketing. "In response to this, Aflac has revised its GSTD policy to allow employers to improve their breadth of benefit offerings with no additional impact to their bottom lines, while helping to bring much-needed peace of mind to their valuable employees."