Aetna (NYSE:AET) announced that it will offer voluntary disability insurance (VDI) plan and claim administration to California-based self-insured plan sponsors and has joined with Innovative Care Systems, Inc. (ICS) to assist customers in conforming with California state laws governing voluntary disability coverage. The laws require employers to provide disability benefits to employees who experience a non-occupational injury or illness.
Under this arrangement, Aetna and ICS will offer plan and claim administration for self-insured voluntary disability plans, which includes paying claims for customers’ employees and managing short-term disability and paid family leaves. Aetna will provide all sales, sales support, implementation support, claims administration and customer reporting to VDI customers.
On behalf of Aetna, ICS will handle all administrative tasks which VDI customers are required to comply with under California law, such as:
- Feasibility studies
- Design, preparation and filing of voluntary plans
- Representation at claim appeal hearings
- Annual reporting to the state
- Voluntary enrollments involving an election by employees of whether or not to support the plan sponsors’ funding of VDI benefits.
“We view ICS as a valuable partner as we continue to expand our disability business in California,” said Dana Benbow, head of Group Insurance for Aetna. “ICS has the expertise to see that members’ interests are protected and help customers stay compliant with the State’s insurance laws. Should a customer need representation on a claim, we’re partnering with a vendor which has the experience needed to effectively support the representation efforts and assist Aetna in delivering the service customers expect.”
“By helping incorporate the use of unique and innovative voluntary disability programs into their offerings, ICS looks forward to working with Aetna to help expand their disability business in California,” said Deborah Kweller, ICS CEO.
About ICS
ICS is a leader in managing all aspects of employee absence including state and federal Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA), self-insured group disability benefits plans and private State Disability Insurance (SDI) plans. Using the Absence Concierge service, ICS matches employee needs with health and work/life management resources to improve the productivity of its clients' employees. ICS offers both outsourced and self-administered leave management programs under federal and state FMLA laws and employer-sponsored leaves.
For more information, about ICS call 800-965-1444 or visit www.innovativecaresystems.com
About Aetna
Aetna is one of the nation’s leading diversified health care benefits companies, serving approximately 37.3 million people with information and resources to help them make better informed decisions about their health care. Aetna offers a broad range of traditional and consumer-directed health insurance products and related services, including medical, pharmacy, dental, behavioral health, group life and disability plans, and medical management capabilities and health care management services for Medicaid plans. Our customers include employer groups, individuals, college students, part-time and hourly workers, health plans, governmental units, government-sponsored plans, labor groups and expatriates. www.aetna.com
Contacts:
Aetna
Katie Vukas, 860-273-7062
vukask@aetna.com
