To help provide relief for California policyholders residing in Ventura and San Diego Counties affected by the winter storms, Aflac will provide a premium grace period starting Jan. 22, 2024, and ending Mar. 25, 2024. This grace period also provides an extension of filing deadlines for claims and leniency for any other action required under the policy. Aflac will provide a replacement copy of the policy upon request by the policyholder
To help provide relief for California policyholders residing in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Ventura Counties affected by the winter storms, Aflac will provide a premium grace period starting Feb. 3, 2024, and ending Apr. 4, 2024. This grace period also provides an extension of filing deadlines for claims and leniency for any other action required under the policy. Aflac will provide a replacement copy of the policy upon request by the policyholder.
To help provide relief for California policyholders residing in Alameda, Butte, Glenn, Lake, Mendocino, Monterey, Sacramento, San Francisco, Santa Cruz, Sonoma, and Sutter Counties affected by the winter storms, Aflac will provide a premium grace period starting Feb. 3, 2024, and ending May 21, 2024. This grace period also provides an extension of filing deadlines for claims and leniency for any other action required under the policy. Aflac will provide a replacement copy of the policy upon request by the policyholder.
On Feb. 21, 2024, the cyber event reported by Change Healthcare, a company that assists healthcare providers with claims submissions and payments, has created a significant impact to health care providers, including hospitals, individual practitioners, practice groups, diagnostic centers, laboratories, and pharmacies. We have determined Aflac’s primary operations are not impacted. Further, Aflac and its subsidiaries do not have any direct connection to Change Healthcare systems in any of Aflac’s systems or applications. At this time, we are not aware of any impact to customer data but we are monitoring for any communications from our critical third-party suppliers. While Change Healthcare’s cyber event was not directed at Aflac, we will provide flexibility with claims submissions related to this incident should it be needed. If you believe you have a claim impacted by Change Healthcare’s event, please contact Aflac at 800-992-3522.
Flexible benefits cover changing needs of workers in post-pandemic environment
COLUMBUS, Ga., May 2, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Aflac Incorporated, a leading provider of supplemental insurance products in the U.S., today announced the launch of its newly redesigned Aflac Group Critical Illness Insurance to help employers better support the changing needs of their valued workers in a post-pandemic environment. The newly designed product includes more standard and optional benefits, giving employers greater flexibility to design the coverage plan that meets the unique needs of their workforce. This has become increasingly important as critical illness insurance is one of the five fastest-growing benefits employers offer.1
Aflac's redesigned Group Critical Illness Insurance is a next-generation product, offering coverage for a growing list of acute and chronic conditions. In addition to benefits for serious health events and illnesses — like heart attacks, stroke and cancer — that are traditionally part of a critical illness plan, the redesigned product now gives employers the option to include coverage for infectious diseases, including the flu, pneumonia, human coronavirus and chronic conditions like diabetes.
Aflac's new Group Critical Illness Insurance product also offers a mental illness rider that covers serious mental illnesses, including bipolar disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder, substance use disorder, major depressive disorder and schizophrenia. This benefit helps address alarming survey data that shows 80% of workers are worried about their mental health,2 particularly as studies show that chronic illnesses, such as cancer, heart disease or diabetes, may increase the likelihood of having or developing a mental health condition.3 Health screenings, including mental health exams that can help detect potential problems before they become more harmful to a covered individual's health, are also available in the plan.
"The past two years have taught us that being prepared for potential medical challenge is essential for employers to maintain a safe and healthy workforce," said Bob Ruff, senior vice president, Aflac Group Voluntary Benefits. "Aflac's new Group Critical Illness Insurance, including new mental health and infectious disease coverage, allows employers to keep their benefits program robust in a way that is meaningful and relevant for today's workforce, while not impacting budget and cost constraints."
"Employees bring their whole selves to work. That includes everything they're dealing with physically, mentally and financially, and the last two years have been especially challenging," said Kim Rudeen, vice president, Aflac Product Development and Management. "Aflac's Group Critical Illness Insurance products were designed to meet today's rapidly changing benefits environment with flexible coverage that helps take care of expenses health insurance doesn't cover. Insured individuals can use their benefits to help with medical co-pays, deductibles and prescriptions or everyday living expenses like rent, utilities or child care."
Highlights of Aflac's strengthened Critical Illness Insurance product include:
Learn more about this new plan at Aflac.com/critical.
Products and benefits vary by state and are not currently available in all states.
Aflac Group products are underwritten by Continental American Insurance Company (CAIC), a proud member of the Aflac family of insurers. CAIC is not licensed to solicit business in New York, Guam, Puerto Rico, or the Virgin Islands. For groups sitused in California, group coverage is underwritten by Continental American Life Insurance Company.
About Aflac Incorporated
Aflac Incorporated (NYSE: AFL) is a Fortune 500 company helping provide protection to more than 50 million people through its subsidiaries in Japan and the U.S., where it is a leading supplemental insurer by paying cash fast when insured individuals get sick or injured. For more than six decades, insurance policies of Aflac Incorporated's subsidiaries have given insured individuals the opportunity to focus on recovery, not financial stress. In the U.S., Aflac is the number one provider of voluntary/worksite insurance products. Aflac Life Insurance Japan is the leading provider of medical and cancer insurance in Japan, where it insures 1 in 4 households. In 2021, Aflac Incorporated was proud to be included as one of the World's Most Ethical Companies by Ethisphere for the 16th consecutive year. Also in 2021, the company was included in the Dow Jones Sustainability North America Index and became a signatory of the Principles for Responsible Investment (PRI). In 2022, Aflac Incorporated was included on Fortune's list of World's Most Admired Companies for the 21st time and Bloomberg's Gender-Equality Index for the third consecutive year. To find out how to get help with expenses health insurance doesn't cover, get to know us at aflac.com or aflac.com/español. Investors may learn more about Aflac Incorporated and its commitment to ESG and social responsibility at investors.aflac.com under "Sustainability."
Aflac herein means American Family Life Assurance Company of Columbus and American Family Life Assurance Company of New York.
1 Willis Towers Watson. Pandemic accelerates employer voluntary benefit offerings. May 13, 2021. Accessed 10.7.2021.
2 The Conference Board. Survey: Workers Say Job Pressures Take Bigger Mental Toll than COVID-19 Fears. October 7, 2021. Accessed 10.28.2021.
3 Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. Chronic Illness and Mental Health: Recognizing and Treating Depression. Accessed 11.15.21.
For interviews, contact: Jon Sullivan, 706-763-4813 or jsullivan@aflac.com
Analyst and investor contact: David A. Young, 706-596-3264, 800-235-2667 or dyoung@aflac.com
SOURCE Aflac Incorporated
