Disability Insurance Awareness Month is here, making it a great time to remind clients about income protection and how it helps protect their ability to earn an income. Disability income insurance is a fairly easy topic to talk about – and one your clients should quickly understand. Yet, nearly 7 out of every 10 working Americans say they can’t make it a month without a paycheck before feeling major financial strains. Here are questions you can ask to start the income protection conversations: If you become sick or injured and unable to work, who’ll pay your expenses? Do you have
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Important Life Underwriting Update
Throughout the rapidly evolving pandemic, Mutual of Omaha has been continuously evaluating our underwriting and new business practices to support business continuity, deliver a consistently high level of service, and maintain our financial strength. As a result, effective Wednesday, April 15, 2020, we are implementing the following temporary changes to our life insurance underwriting guidelines. These changes apply to all fully-underwritten life insurance cases that are not already approved or issued. This includes any newly submitted and pending in-house cases, whether formal or informal. Postponements Due to International Travel All fully-underwritten life insurance cases where the proposed insured has plans
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Increased Simplified Underwriting Amounts for Disability Income
Mutual of Omaha is committed to helping you continue to meet the income protection needs of your clients. We have good news to share, to make it easier to sell disability income insurance. Effective immediately, we are making the following enhancement to new applications for simplified underwriting guidelines: Increasing the amount from $3,000 to $6,000 of monthly benefit Advantages of Simplified Underwriting: Ages 18-45, no labs up to and including $6,000 Age 46+ blood urine, physical data No financial requirements up to and including $6,000 monthly benefit, all benefit periods* *If requesting the self-employed discount, two-year financial documentation will be
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Protecting One’s Largest Investment
Unfortunately, many of your middle-income clients are more likely not prepared for a disruption in their pay – nearly 70 percent of Americans have less than $1,000 in savings and more than one-third have no savings at all. Priority Income Protection® can be their safety net. By providing up to $4,000 in monthly disability income insurance benefits, it’s perfect for middle-income clients. And an easy quote e-application, the application process couldn’t be simpler. Have questions or need a quote? Visit mutualofomaha.com/pip. Protecting One’s Largest Investment #goldencareagent #mutualofomaha
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Quick and Easy Underwriting with Critical Advantage
Did you know your clients may be eligible for coverage even if they have been diagnosed in the past for cancer, heart attack or stroke? Check out the great underwriting features for all the Critical Advantage products. Cancer application Cancer look-back is 10 years* Look back testing is 3 years Only 3 health questions Heart attack and stroke application Heart attack/stroke look back is 10 years* Look back for treatment and testing is 3 years Controlled diabetes diagnosis considered Only 4 health questions Critical Illness application Cancer look-back is 10 years* Look back for treatment and testing is 3 years
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Turn DI Objections into Sales
Whether you’re a new or seasoned producer selling disability income insurance you should be aware of reasons people think they don’t need this essential coverage. The key is to be prepared for anything a prospective client might say. Objection: “Nothing will happen to me. I don’t need DI.” It’s probably human nature to think like this. However, clients who raise this objection simply are not facing reality of losing their income. If your client missed three months’ worth of income, how would they pay their expenses? As an insurance professional looking out for your client’s best interests, it’s your job
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The Risk is Real
While most people don’t think twice about purchasing auto, homeowners’ or even life insurance, they often fail to realize that their most valuable asset is their ability to earn an income. Suffering a disability for any length of time because of a sickness or injury could have devastating financial consequences for clients. Here are some insights into how real the risks are: At least 51 million working adults in the United States are without disability insurance other than the basic coverage available through Social Security. Only 48 percent of American adults indicate they have enough savings to cover three months
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Supplementing Disability Income Insurance Coverage
Some consumers may have a disability income policy insurance through their employer, it’s important to ask them about how the policy would pay. Consider whether the policy’s monthly benefits would begin to pay benefits soon enough. Clients need to understand their existing coverage to help solve the protection gap. One solution is to supplement current employer coverage with an individual short-term disability income insurance. Short-term coverage can help pay monthly benefits sooner than an employer’s long-term disability insurance policy. And it can pay up until the time employer-sponsored benefits begin. As a producer, you can provide more complete income protection
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Save Time with the DI Tele-Application!
The DI tele-app facilitates a faster application process, you don’t have to ask medical questions, and reduces the need for call-backs to your customers by allowing our trained nurses to gather your clients’ medical information. Advantages of the DI Tele-app Simplifies the sales process for both the agent and the client Don’t have to ask awkward medical questions Quicker issue time Fewer attending physician statements Client answers medical questions only once by a trained nurse regarding activities, health habits, occupation(s), and medical history Materials Available Next Steps brochure If you have any questions, please contact Mutual of Omaha’s Sales Support
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Tax Advantages of Disability Income Insurance
The taxation of disability income insurance is straightforward – especially in individual cases. However, surprises can occur if policies are set up incorrectly as unexpected taxation of a benefit reduces available funds at precisely the wrong time. Individual DI In terms of taxes, individual DI is rather clear cut. Premiums paid by individual policyholders are non-deductible as they are not considered an eligible medical expense on Schedule A. Also, benefits are not included as income and therefore not taxable. Employer-Paid DI In disability income cases where a business entity is involved, the tax implications are varied. Here are some common
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