Cigna 2008 Annual Report Download - page 31

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D. Disability and Life
Principal Products and Services
CIGNA’s Disability and Life segment (“CIGNA Disability and Life”) provides the following insurance products and their related
services: group life insurance, long-term and short-term disability insurance, workers’ compensation and disability case management,
and accident and specialty insurance. These products and services are provided by subsidiaries of CIGNA Corporation.
Disability Insurance
CIGNA Disability and Life markets group long-term and short-term disability insurance products and services in all 50 states and
statutorily required disability insurance plans in certain states. These products and services generally provide a fixed level of income
to replace a portion of wages lost because of disability. They also provide assistance to the employee in returning to work and
assistance to the employer in managing the cost of employee disability. Group disability coverage is typically employer-paid or a
combination of employer and employee-paid.
CIGNA Disability and Life also provides case management and related services to workers’ compensation insurers and employers
who self-fund workers’ compensation and disability benefits.
CIGNA Disability and Life’s disability insurance products may be integrated with other disability benefit programs, behavioral
programs, workers’ compensation, medical programs, social security advocacy, and the Family and Medical Leave Act and leave of
absence administration. CIGNA Disability and Life believes this integration provides customers with increased efficiency and
effectiveness in disability claims management, enhances productivity and reduces overall costs to employers. Combining CIGNA
Disability and Life disability and CIGNA HealthCare’s medical programs may provide enhanced opportunities to influence outcomes,
reduce the cost of both medical and disability events and improve the return to work rate. CIGNA Disability and Life has formalized
an integrated approach to health and wellness through the Disability and Healthcare Connect Program. This program uses information
from the CIGNA HealthCare and CIGNA Disability and Life databases to help identify, treat and manage disabilities before they
become chronic, longer in duration and more costly. Proactive outreach from CIGNA Behavioral Health assists employees suffering
from a mental health condition, either as a primary condition or as a result of another condition. CIGNA may receive fees for
providing these integrated services to customers.
CIGNA Disability and Life is an industry leader in returning employees to work quickly. Shorter disability claim durations mean
higher productivity and lower cost for employers and a better quality of life for their employees. Data from a recent industry customer
satisfaction survey showed that CIGNA Disability and Life’s short-term and long-term disability claimant satisfaction levels meet and
in certain metrics exceed those of our competitors.
Approximately 7,100 insured disability policies covering approximately 4.9 million lives were outstanding as of December 31,
2008.
Life Insurance
Group life insurance products include group term life and group universal life. Group term life insurance may be employer-paid
basic life insurance, employee-paid supplemental life insurance or a combination thereof.
CIGNA no longer actively markets group universal life insurance to new employers, but continues to administer the product for
and markets to existing policyholders. Group universal life insurance is a voluntary life insurance product in which the owner may
accumulate cash value. The cash value earns interest at rates declared from time to time, subject to a minimum guaranteed contracted
rate, and may be borrowed, withdrawn, or, within certain limits, used to fund future life insurance coverage. With group variable
universal life insurance, the cash value varies directly with the performance of the underlying investments and neither the return nor
the principal is guaranteed.
Approximately 6,500 group life insurance policies covering approximately 6.2 million lives were outstanding as of December 31,
2008.