April issue

For you:

• Recording Available - Family Leave Insurance Webinar held on March 26, 2024 - Watch now
• Tri-Agency ruling on Hospital Indemnity plans
• Reminder: Notice regarding approved advertising materials

What we shared with Clients:

• First Quarter Sun Life Compliance News – Download
• Webinar recording available - Pregnancy Workers Fairness Act - Watch now
• Mark your calendars for the 2024 High-Cost claims report - Register now
• Sun Life + Workday - Video
• New partnership with UKG, ADP Nationals and bswift! - Find out more
• Enhanced coverage around gene therapies for self-funded employers - Learn more
• A new twist on preventive dental care brings value while helping with overall health - Find out more
• Preventive dental care can help manage long-term health costs and supports overall productivity - Find out how
• Sun Life’s clinical interventions improve mental health and wellness for eligible members - Learn more
• Sun Life simplifies access to Maternity coverage - Speed things up!
• Are you communicating available services to your employees? - Find out more
• Health Navigator: A focus on member engagement - Learn more
• Important PFML reminders and updates - Read them now

Recording Available - Family Leave Insurance Webinar held on March 26, 2024

James Slotnick, VP, Government Relations & Sustainability and Carla Fritz, Director, Absence Products gave an informational webinar on Family Leave Insurance on March 26, 2024. This webinar was presented to brokers in Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Tennessee, Texas, the states approved for Sun Life FLI product, as well as brokers in a few additional states that we are monitoring for our next filing. It is a good watch for anyone interested in learning more about Family Leave Insurance and how Sun Life is managing this exciting new product.

Tri-Agency ruling on Hospital Indemnity plans

The Federal Tri-Agency of the Dept. of Labor, Dept. of Treasury and Health and Human Services has issued new regulations that impact Hospital Indemnity and other Fixed Indemnity benefits. The Rule requires a new disclosure on the first page of benefits education/enrollment content provided to employees at or before the time they are given the opportunity to enroll (or reenroll) in coverage. The notice primarily educates employees that Hospital Indemnity insurance is not equivalent to comprehensive health insurance. The Rule requires the notice to be in place for enrollments with plan effective dates on and after January 1, 2025. At this time, we understand the disclosure obligation to be applicable to Hospital Indemnity plans. Sun Life supports benefits education and is working towards adding this disclosure to ensure compliance with the Rule. More information on the Rule may be found on the Federal Register website at the National Archives.

Reminder: Notice regarding approved advertising materials

Your Sun Life selling agreement and state advertising regulations require you to use the approved Sun Life marketing materials that we provide you. If you modify or create new materials, relating to the Sun Life companies, their policies, or services, we remind you of your obligation to share these with your Sun Life Employee Benefits Representative for Sun Life’s written approval prior to use.

First Quarter Sun Life Compliance News

Download Sun Life’s COMPLIANCE NEWS authored by Sun Life Assistant Vice President & Senior Counsel, Marjory Robertson, JD, and Senior Counsel, Abigail O’Connell, JD.

Included in the First Quarter 2024 Newsletter:

• Federal Leave and Accommodation Activity.
• Awaiting the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PFWA) Regulations
• State of Texas Challenges the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act (PFWA)
• New and Amended Unpaid Leave and Accommodation Laws- CA, OR
• Developments in Paid Leave Law – CA, MD, MA OR, WA

Webinar recording available - Pregnancy Workers Fairness Act

Sun Life’s Marjory Robertson, AVP & Senior Counsel, and Brittany Lambert, Accommodation Consultant Lead, Group Claims, shared common sense and practical lessons to be learned from the Pregnancy Workers Fairness Act (PWFA)'s final regulations from the EEOC. During this informative webinar held on April 22, 2024, they also provided guidance to help ensure compliance.

Mark your calendars for the 2024 High-Cost claims report

Our annual analysis will be coming out mid-may, and our team of Sun Life experts will be presenting June 5th at 11am ET on trends within the report, how self-funded employers can think about the insights, and what Sun Life is thinking about for solutions around these highest-cost claims. Mark your calendars for this year’s webinar on June 5th here.

New partnership with UKG, ADP Nationals and bswift!

• With the upcoming launch of our UKG partnership, we've built an API connection with UKG Pro Workforce Management to deliver an automated way to create and update employee leaves that saves your clients time and reduces errors for an easy absence experience. Be on the lookout for more information soon!
• We’ve expanded our ADP relationship with our new partnership with ADP National platforms that include Vantage HCM, Health & Welfare Service Engine and Next Gen HCM. This partnership offers waived implementation and EDI feeds and an EOI API that will be coming soon.
• With our new partnership with bswift we're now part of their Integration Partner Program which provides:
• Dedicated technology and benefit experts from bswift that support every aspect of building, managing, and positioning Sun Life products
• A playbook and EDI templates that are available as a resource to support product build details and instructions
• EDX and SSO connectivity

To learn more about our partnerships and connections visit our Sun Life Link page.

Enhanced coverage around gene therapies for self-funded employers

For stop-loss clients with a no new laser policy, beginning with 7/1/2024 effective dates, lasers will not be applied for the cost of gene therapies. To learn more, click here for information on this coverage, for gene therapies approved today and any that receive FDA approval in the future. 

A new twist on preventive dental care brings value while helping with overall health

Sun Life’s SVP Marc Warrington shares a new way to help employees get more coverage for the dental care they need while stretching benefit dollars with Preventive Rewards.

Preventive dental care can help manage long-term health costs and supports overall productivity

Nearly half of all U.S. adults over 30 years old suffer from periodontal disease, a root cause of and an increase in risk for many medical conditions that cost billions per year in healthcare. Sun Life Dental VP Joi Tillman discusses how creating a mindset of prevention when it comes to oral health can help improve employees’ overall wellbeing and avoid future medical costs.

Sun Life’s clinical interventions improve mental health and wellness for eligible members

Read our first reports on the early outcomes for Sun Life members who participated in the clinical intervention programs provided by our partners Goodpath and AbleTo. We’re excited by the potential these outcomes could offer members, your employees, receiving disability benefits for MSK pain or long COVID symptoms, or for members receiving benefits for cancer. These clinical interventions are part of Sun Life's focus on expanding access to care and benefits.

Read the reports:

• Whole-person care improves health symptoms for members receiving disability benefits
• Virtual behavioral health improves mental wellness for members receiving benefits for cancer

Speeding Hospital Indemnity Maternity payments with automation

Sun Life understands new parents may overlook some of their employee benefits. As a key element of our ongoing Claims integration journey, Sun Life has enabled a new mother’s Short-Term Disability claim to trigger her Hospital Indemnity Maternity benefits and pay automatically. This capability allows families to focus on their new addition rather than filing multiple claims, and provides more financial support at a very cost-intensive period of life.  

Are you communicating available services to your employees?

Employees may be missing out on valuable services that can support their mental well-being or help with personal issues or events. It’s important to communicate these services throughout the year so they can take advantage of them.

Services you may have:

• Employee Assistance Program (EAP) - helps with personal issues, planning for life events, or managing daily life
• Self Care through AbleTo – provides access to digital tools that support mental well-being
• Emergency Travel Assistance with ID Theft Protection - helps with emergencies when traveling 100+ miles from home and provides support from anti-fraud experts
• Claimant Support Services with Online Will Preparation – provides access to counselors and financial or legal experts when a disability or Life claim has been filed, and a secure online site to create a will

Reach out to your Sun Life representative if you need communication suggestions.

Health Navigator: A focus on member engagement

As a leading provider of employee benefits, Sun Life recognizes the importance of educating employees on their benefits and how to utilize them. Click here to see how we partner with each Health Navigator client to increase benefit utilization through ongoing communication and customizable strategies.

Important PFML reminders and updates

MA PFML:

• Renewal reminder: Employers must renew their Sun Life self-insured and fully insured private plan exemptions through MassTaxConnect every 12 months or as otherwise directed by the Department of Family and Medical Leave (DFML). Clients with a Sun Life private plan should contact your Sun Life representative for the appropriate confirmation form(s) prior to your private plan renewal date.
• Reporting update: Annual reports for private plan clients are due to the state by 8/31/24. For our fully insured PFML clients, Sun Life will be filing this report of aggregate client data on your behalf. For Self-Insured clients, we will reach out with a template of information in July.

HI TDI:

• Reporting reminder: The due date for the HI TDI Reporting has been moved to August 2024. Sun Life will reach out to gather information from clients in late June/July to fulfill this requirement.

CT PFML:

• Reporting reminder: All CT PFML private plan clients were required to submit their PFML report to the state by May 1, 2024 for the reporting period 1/1/23 – 12/31/23. If you have not completed this task, please follow our instructions on how to download and complete the report.

On the horizon…

• Sun Life is closely monitoring the rule development for the new 2026 PFML programs starting in Maine, Delaware, Maryland, and Minnesota. We anticipate offering both fully insured and self-insured private plan options, and will provide quoting and private plan processes as soon as they become available. In the meantime, please visit sunlife.com/stateprograms to learn about these new programs or see our Quarterly Compliance Update for additional state paid leave legislative activity and updates.

Go paperless! Email us today to stop receiving paper bills. All we need is your policy number and bill group.

Making care and benefits easier.

Health Navigator is provided by PinnacleCare. PinnacleCare is a member of the Sun Life Financial Inc. (“Sun Life”) family of companies. PinnacleCare and its employees do not diagnose medical conditions, recommend treatment options or provide medical care, and any information or services provided should not be considered medical advice. Any medical decisions should be made only after consultation with and at the direction of the member’s medical provider. Any person or entity who provides health care services following a referral or other service provided does so independently and not as an agent or representative of PinnacleCare.

Group insurance and stop loss policies are underwritten by Sun Life Assurance Company of Canada (Wellesley Hills, MA) in all states, except New York. In New York, group insurance policies are underwritten by Sun Life and Health Insurance Company (U.S.) (Lansing, MI).

MPNL-1140-24Q2 #1357522700 04/24 (exp. 04/26)