Policy Enhancements:
Why They Aren’t Necessarily As Good As They Sound
In prior posts, we’ve talked before about the different types of disability insurance, including group disability insurance. Group policies are a subset of disability policies that are often made available to members of professional organizations. With group policies, the organization is the policy owner and the coverage amount and policy features are ultimately determined by the organization, not its members. Because the policy is owned by the organization, this also means that policy terms can change or be updated without your input. When this occurs, these changes may be presented to you as a “policy enhancement.”
While “policy enhancements” sound like they’ll be an upgrade to a policy, sometimes they are quite the opposite. Policy enhancements can be beneficial to the policy holder. For example, the organization might decide that it wants to increase the policy’s maximum benefit period from age 65 to age 67.
Unfortunately, not all changes to group policies benefit the insured. While most organizations don’t want to put their members in a worse off position, many organizations receive some degree of pressure from their members to reduce the premium costs of the policies they offer. Knowing this, disability insurers frame changes to the policy as a way to “cut costs” and, as a result, an organization might agree to allow the insurance company to add a more stringent care provision, add a mental/nervous disorder limitation, or insert a no-work provision in an effort to reduce premium costs for its members. Additionally, policy language (especially the provisions found in newer policies) is often unduly complex and crafted so that it is difficult for a layperson to understand. Consequently, even a well-meaning organization may be misled into making policy changes without understanding the full impact a “policy enhancement” may have on disability coverage.
If you are a member of a group plan, it is important that you remain aware of any changes to the group policy and know its current terms. Because policy enhancements change the terms of a policy, you should receive a notification in the mail if any changes are made. If you throw this notice away or place it in a drawer without reviewing it, you won’t know how the adopted change affects you (including whether can still rely on the policy for adequate coverage and, by extension, whether you want to continue paying premiums to keep the coverage in place).
