Lincoln Financial Group Supports Disability Insurance Awareness Month

PHILADELPHIA, May 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- To help raise public awareness of the need to protect one's income with disability insurance, the Lincoln Financial Group is supporting Disability Insurance Awareness Month for the month of May in conjunction with the Council for Disability Awareness and LifeHappens.org – organizations dedicated to raising awareness about the risk and consequence of disability.

"Lincoln encourages all wage earners to take steps to prevent and plan for disabilities, and to protect their incomes," said Mark Konen, President, Insurance & Retirement Solutions. "Becoming disabled and not being able to work is one of the greatest financial risks people face."

For nearly every American wage earner, the ability to earn a paycheck is the primary source of all financial planning and financial security. Without an income, funding a retirement, saving for college, paying for a home or apartment and even paying day-to-day bills is simply not possible. Despite the fundamental importance income plays in their financial security, the typical American worker dramatically underestimates the risk of income loss that can be caused by illness or injury. The result is that roughly two thirds of America's workforce, or 100 million workers, has no private disability insurance protection.

"A disability can not only impact the ability to cover one's basic expenses, but it can also interrupt the retirement contributions that people make into employer-sponsored plans like 401(k)s and 403(b) plans," said Dave Swanson, Vice President, Product, Risk & Business Technology Management. "It's critical for disabled employees to be able to remain invested and able to save for retirement."

With Lincoln's Group Long-Term Disability (LTD) Retirement Protection Benefit, employees can continue building retirement savings even when a disability prevents them from working and earning an income. Offered on Lincoln's group LTD insurance plans, the Retirement Protection Benefit pays a monthly benefit while an Insured Employee is Totally or Partially Disabled and receives a Total or Partial Disability Monthly Benefit under the Policy. To qualify, an Insured Employee must have been contributing to an Employer-Sponsored Qualified Plan for a minimum of three consecutive months prior to the date of Total or Partial Disability. The monthly Retirement Protection Benefit amount is based on a percentage of the Insured Employee's Basic Monthly Earnings.  

Additionally, depending on the structure of his/her specific employer plan, the disabled insured employee may choose to have the benefit paid to the employer, for deposit on his/her behalf into the employer-sponsored qualified plan; or, the disabled insured employee may opt to have the benefit paid into a non-qualified Lincoln annuity product; or may opt to have the benefit paid into any annuity or trust of their own selection.

As with all Lincoln group programs, Lincoln's disability coverage is implemented by Lincoln's I-Team(SM), which creates a seamless and streamlined implementation process. This offers employers further simplification of the administration process and shortened time cycles for the issuance of policies in Lincoln's Life and Disability product lines.

Lincoln Financial is a supporter and member of the Council for Disability Awareness (CDA), a non-profit, educational organization that is dedicated to raising awareness about the risk and consequence of disability. Additionally, Lincoln is a supporter of LifeHappens.org, a group of prominent financial industry and advocacy organizations that have joined together to raise public awareness of the need for comprehensive retirement planning.

In partnership with the CDA and LifeHappens.org, Lincoln Financial is helping to raise awareness of Disability Insurance Awareness Month in May, with the theme of "Protect Your Paycheck." Additional disability insurance educational materials and resources, tips and interactive tools can be found online at www.lfg.com or at www.lifehappens.org. Visit the CDA's website at www.disabilitycanhappen.org and learn about the resources, marketing materials and educational tools that CDA makes available.

Group insurance products are issued by The Lincoln National Life Insurance Company (Fort Wayne, IN), which does not solicit business in New York, nor is it licensed to do so. In New York, group insurance products are issued by Lincoln Life & Annuity Company of New York (Syracuse, NY). Both are Lincoln Financial Group® companies. Product availability and/or features may vary by state. Limitations and exclusions may apply.

Lincoln Financial Group is the marketing name for Lincoln National Corporation (NYSE: LNC) and its affiliates. With headquarters in the Philadelphia region, the companies of Lincoln Financial Group had assets under management of $146 billion as of March 31, 2010. Through its affiliated companies, Lincoln Financial Group offers: annuities; life, group life and disability insurance; 401(k) and 403(b) plans; savings plans; and comprehensive financial planning and advisory services. For more information, including a copy of our most recent SEC reports containing our balance sheets, please visit www.LincolnFinancial.com.

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SOURCE Lincoln Financial Group