Revised July 3, 2006 Long Term Disability Insurance Benefit Highlights Tennessee Board of Regents Exempt Employees This guide is designed to provide a general overview of your long term disability benefits. It is not a contract or an official interpretation of the benefit plan. For more detailed information, please refer to the Hartford summary plan description booklet. Should any questions or conflicts arise; the plan contract will be the final authority in determining your benefits.
Long Term Disability Insurance: Helping You Help Yourself A disabling accident or illness could change your life in a number of ways. It could prevent you from working and earning an income. It could cost you your savings, your home and your family s future everything you ve been working for. If you think a Long Term disability can t happen to you, you should think again. Disability strikes one in four workers before age 65*. That s why Tennessee Board of Regents is now making it possible for you to protect yourself and your family with an innovative Long Term Disability (LTD) plan. The LTD plan not only helps you replace your lost income when you re disabled and unable to earn a living, it also offers a wide range of resources and support to help you return to work and to an independent, productive lifestyle. It enables you to take an active role in your recovery by providing the tools you need to make the most of your abilities. Source: 1987 Commissioner s Group Disability Income Table, Society of Actuaries Hartford Life: Strength, Experience, Innovation Your LTD plan is insured by Hartford Life and Accident Insurance Company, a member of Hartford Life. Hartford Life is a leading writer of disability insurance programs and one of the largest and strongest financial services organizations in the nation. Who s Eligible? All active regular exempt employees scheduled to work 30 or more hours a week are eligible for coverage under this plan. Coverage Effective Date You are eligible for coverage on the first day of the month following 30 days of continuous service. If you are reclassified and move from non-exempt status to exempt status, you have 31 days from the date of reclassification to enroll in any level of the exempt LTD plan. All terms and conditions of the policy apply. Please see your Human Resource Representative for further details. Your LTD Benefit Highlights Your LTD benefits provide you with loss of income protection if you become disabled from a covered sickness, pregnancy or accidental bodily injury. Your benefits begin after you have been disabled for either 3, 4 or 6 months (known as the elimination period) or after your Salary Continuation benefits end, whichever is later. Plan 1 (6 month elimination period) replaces up to 50% of your monthly income loss. Plan 2 (4 month elimination period) replaces up to 60% of your monthly income loss. Plan 3 (3 month elimination period) replaces up to 66 2/3% of your monthly income loss. The maxi mum monthly benefit for Plan 1 is $2,000, Plan 2 is $4,000 and Plan 3 is $6,000. Benefit payments will be reduced by the amount of other income benefits you receive while disabled, such as Workers Compensation, Social Security, or any Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System benefit. In addition, your plan offers a return-to-work incentive. During the first 12 months you return to work following the elimination period, your current monthly earnings and monthly benefit combined may equal up to 2
100% of your pre-disability earnings. If the combined amount exceeds 100%, it will be reduced by the amount of the excess. To insure that you receive maximum benefits from your elected plan, you should apply for those benefits at the onset of your disability. Pension Annuity Benefit Highlights An Annuity Contribution Benefit equal to 5% (Plan 1); 10% (Plan 2); or 15% ( Plan 3) of your pre-disability earnings may be payable, provided you ve been disabled for Plan 1 6 months, Plan 2 4 months or Plan 3 3 months continuously. Payments under this benefit are made to a qualified defined contribution plan, or other plan approved by Hartford Life. Payments under this benefit are made according to the rules and regulations of the Internal Revenue Service and the provisions of your Pension Plan. Any such payment that can not be paid to the trustee or administrator of your Pension Plan will be paid to a deferred annuity account designated by you. Your LTD in Action If you become disabled, a specially trained claim management team will provide comprehensive, hands-on guidance to help you return to work. The team, which includes a clinical specialist and a rehabilitation professional, will assess your disability and determine which resources and support services are appropriate for you. Then, the team will design a customized program based on your functional capabilities and specific needs. They ll use both traditional resources, innovative support services that can include: rehabilitation programs; a comprehensive vocational assessment; a functional capacities evaluation; job restructuring; skills enhancement; transitional work; occupational and physical therapy; and counseling and job development/placement. Term of Coverage Employees who enroll in the plan more than 31 days after their eligibility date are required to provide proof of good health that Hartford Life must approve before coverage can begin. If you re absent from work because of a disability on the day your coverage would normally become effective, your coverage begins when you have returned to active work for one full day. Coverage continues as long as you re an eligible employee, the group plan remains in effect and your premiums are paid. If the group plan or your employment with Tennessee Board of Regents terminates while you re receiving benefits, your payments will continue as long as you re disabled and eligible for benefits. 3
Benefit Cost The cost of your LTD coverage depends on the plan you elect as shown in the rate chart below. Follow these steps to see how your cost is determined: 1. Enter your annual earnings* (see below maximums) $ 2. Divide by 1200: $ 3. Enter the Rate 1 from the table below: $ 4. Multiply item 2 by item 3. $ 5. Enter your annual earnings **(no maximum) $ 6. Divide by 1200 : $ 7. Enter the Rate 2 from the table below : $ 8. Multiply item 6 by item 7. $ 9. Add line 4 to line 8. This is your monthly premium. $ Plan Option Rate 1 (LTD) Rate 2 (Annuity) ** Plan 1 $0.150 $0.035 Plan 2 $0.211 $0.086 Plan 3 $0.266 $0.137 * Maximums for Rate 1 table - $48,000 for Plan 1; $80,000 for Plan 2; and $108,000 for Plan 3. ** In order to have the annuity benefit you must elect the LTD. How to Enroll Complete the enrollment form that accompanies this brochure and return it to the Payroll Office within 31 days of your eligibility date, even if you decide not to enroll, so your decision can be recorded. Your premiums will be deducted automatically from your paycheck. Important Information About Your Disability Protection Your LTD plan covers disabilities whether or not they are job-related. However, your benefit payments will be reduced by the amount of other income benefits you receive while disabled, such as Workers Compensation, Social Security, or any Tennessee Consolidated Retirement System benefit. (Additional income benefits do not reduce the annuity portion.) Regardless of these offsets, your LTD benefit will never be less than $50 per month ($75/month for Plan 2 & $100/month for Plan 3). Upon enrollment a complete list of other income benefits will be provided in your booklet-certificate. Benefit payments are not subj ect to federal income tax because you pay the entire premium with post-tax dollars. A Cost-of-Living Adjustment allows your monthly LTD Benefit to increase on January 1 of each year, provided you ve been totally disabled for a specified period of time and are receiving benefits when the adjustment is made. Annual adjustments continue until you re no longer totally disabled or reach the age maximum for coverage, whichever comes first. 4
As long as you remain disabled and eligible for benefits, your payments will continue according to the following schedule: Age When Disabled Duration of Payments Prior to age 62 To age 65 62 to 64 4 ¾ years 65 to 68 ¾ To age 70 68 ¾ and over One Year Benefits are not payable for Pre-exi sting Conditions unless (1) you receive no further treatment for that condition for 180 consecutive days from the date coverage begins, or (2) your disability begins on or after the last day of a 365-day period during which you ve been insured. A Pre-exi sting Condition is a medical problem for which you received care during the 180 day period prior to your effective date of coverage. Benefits for substance abuse and mental illness are payable when you are confined in a hospital or other place licensed to provide medical care for the disabling condition. When you are not confined as described above, benefits are limited to a total of 24 months for all disability periods due to substance abuse during your lifetime. Benefits are not payable for disabilities when you are not under the regular care of a physician; or that are caused or contributed to by: war or act of war (declared or not); your commission of or attempt to commit a felony, or to which a contributing cause was your being engaged in an illegal occupation, or an intentionally self-inflicted injury A Survivor Income Benefit can pay a lump-sum benefit to a surviving spouse (or your children in equal shares if there is no surviving spouse) if you die while receiving LTD benefits. If there are no survivors, the benefit will be paid to your estate. The benefit is equal to 1 to 3 months of LTD benefit depending on the LTD plan option you select. Benefits may be terminated if you have the potential to return to work with the help of Hartford Life s resources and support services, but decline to participate. Plan Definitions Disability or disabled means that, during the elimination period and for the next 36 months, you are prevented by accidental bodily injury, sickness, mental illness, substance abuse or pregnancy from performing one or more of the essential duties of your occupation, and as a result, your current monthly earnings are no more than 80% of your indexed pre-disability earnings. After that, you must be prevented from performing one or more of the essential duties of any occupation. Total Disability means during the elimination period and for the next 36 months that benefits are payable, total disability generally means you're unable to engage in the essential duties of your occupation due to accidental bodily injury, sickness, mental illness, substance abuse or pregnancy. After this time, it means the inability to perform any occupation for which you're qualified by education, training or experience. Partial Disability - To encourage your return to a productive lifestyle, the plan pays a Partial Disability benefit if you return to work on a part-time basis and earn at least 20% but no more than 80% of your monthly pre-disability earnings. In fact, during the 12 months following the elimination period your parttime earnings and Partial Disability benefit combined may equal up to 100% of your pre-disability earnings. The partial benefit is available if you've been totally disabled throughout the elimination period, 5
qualified for LTD benefits and recovered enough from the same disability to perform some, but not all, of the essential duties of your occupation. L ook- back Per iod - Benefits are not payable for care received during the 180 days proceeding the date your plan goes into effect. Tr eatment-fr ee Per iod - Benefits may be paid if you received no treatment for 180 consecutive days from the date coverage begins. Insured Period - Benefits may be paid if your disability begins on or after the last day of a 365 day period during which you ve been insured M onthly income loss means your earnings before you became disabled (known as your pre-disability earnings) minus your current monthly earnings. Pr e-disability earnings and M onthly r ate of basic ear nings means your regular monthly base pay from Tennessee Board of Regents just prior to the date you become disabled, excluding commissions, bonuses, overtime pay or any other fringe benefits or extra compensation. Current monthly earnings means the monthly earnings you receive from Tennessee Board of Regents and any other employment while disabled. It includes the amount of pay for another or modified job position, which may be offered to you by your employer or other employer, even if you refuse the offer. Your occupation means your occupation as it is recognized in the general workplace; it doesn t mean the specific job you are performing for a specific employer or at a specific location. Any occupation means an occupation for which you are qualified by education, training and experience. Essential duty is one that is substantial and inherent to the occupation and cannot be reasonably omitted or changed. This includes being at work for the number of hours in your regularly scheduled work week, but not in excess of 40 hours a week. Reasonable alter native means a job position with your employer for which you are qualified by education, training or experience, are able to perform. Questions? If you need additional information, please contact your Human Resource Representative. This brochure explains the general purposes of the insurance described, but in no way changes or affects the policy as actually issued. In the event of any discrepancy between this brochure and the policy, the terms of the policy apply. Complete details are in the certificate of insurance issued to each insured individual. Please read it carefully and keep it in a safe place with your other important documents. Underwritten by: Hartford Life and Accident Insurance Company Hartford Plaza Hartford, CT 06115. Printed in U.S.A. Copyright 2002 The Hartford, Hartford, Connecticut 06115 6