New Group Insurance Coverages From MassMutual Protect American Workers' Finances, Savings

SPRINGFIELD, Mass., Aug. 8, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- With three out of five Americans having little or no emergency savings¹, Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Co. (MassMutual) is introducing new insurance coverages to help working Americans protect their finances and savings against critical illnesses and accidents.

The critical illness and accident group insurance policies are available through employers, either directly or through MassMutual's BeneClick!^SM integrated benefits exchange. The coverage is voluntary, meaning employees pay the full cost of the coverage offered through their workplace, or can be made available on an employer-paid basis. The policies cover employees and, where available, spouses and children as well.

"Many Americans live paycheck to paycheck and therefore struggle when faced with a large expense such as a serious medical issue or accident," said James Ocampo, Assistant Vice President, BeneClick! "MassMutual's research shows that many people struggle financially and 40 percent say personal finances distract them at work."²

Often, workers who find themselves in a financial pinch resort to taking loans from their 401(k)s or other retirement savings accounts. Many of those loans are never repaid, resulting in $6 billion in lost retirement savings a year, according to the Pension Research Council (PRC) at the Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania.³

Critical Illness Protection
A critical illness, like a heart attack, stroke or invasive cancer, can have an emotional, physical and financial impact on a worker as well as his or her family, Ocampo said. Group Critical Illness insurance can help cushion the financial impact of life's unwanted surprises, he said.

Critical illness coverage provides a lump-sum benefit, paid directly to the employee, to help cover medical costs, mortgage payments, childcare, or even groceries. The coverage is also portable, which means employees can take the coverage with them and remain protected if they are diagnosed with a critical illness, even if they change jobs and leave the company.⁴  If the insurance is employer-paid, employees must pay the premiums themselves upon severance from employment if they want to continue coverage.

Accidents happen.
Emergency rooms treat more than 40 million injuries a year across the country, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control (CDC)⁵.  More than 700,000 of those injuries are due to people age 65 and older falling, often leading to head trauma or a hip fracture, the CDC reports⁶.

Unfortunately, a medical emergency can quickly turn into a financial emergency, especially for those who have little or no savings, according to Ocampo. MassMutual's accident insurance provides a temporary replacement for the insured's salary should he or she be unable to work due to an accident, helping cover medical insurance deductibles and co-pays, down time from work and other expenses.

Critical illness and accident group policies are part of a portfolio of protection products offered at the workplace by MassMutual. The policies complement MassMutual@Work Whole Life and Group Universal Life policies, as well as executive life and disability coverages.

"You never know when a medical emergency or accident might strike, and when they do, they can be financially devastating for many Americans," Ocampo said. "With MassMutual's workplace coverages and benefits, we are making financial readiness, readily available."

About MassMutual

MassMutual is a leading mutual life insurance company that is run for the benefit of its members and participating policyowners. MassMutual offers a wide range of financial products and services, including life insurance, disability income insurance, long term care insurance, annuities, retirement plans and other employee benefits. For more information, visit www.massmutual.com.

MassMutual Financial Group is a marketing name for Massachusetts Mutual Life Insurance Company (MassMutual) and its affiliated companies and sales representatives.

¹Federal Reserve, Report on the Economic Well-Being of U.S Households in 2013, http://www.federalreserve.gov/econresdata/2014-economic-well-being-of-us-households-in-2013-executive-summary.htm

²2015 MassMutual Employee Benefits Security Study, https://www.massmutual.com/~/media/files/MM-EE-Benefits-Security-Study-Report.pdf

³Borrowing from the Future:401(k) Plan Loans and Loan Defaults, Pension Research Council, Wharton School, University of Pennsylvania, https://www.asppa.org/Portals/2/PDFs/White%20Papers/WP2014-01.pdf

⁴Portability is not available in all states.

⁵Centers for Disease Control, Emergency Department Visits, http://www.cdc.gov/nchs/fastats/emergency-department.htm

⁶Centers for Disease Control. Home & Recreational Safety, http://www.cdc.gov/homeandrecreationalsafety/falls/adultfalls.html

RS-40062-00

Contact: David Potter
860-562-1525
[email protected]

SOURCE MassMutual Financial Group

Related Links

http://www.massmutual.com