Products

Annuities Index Growth Annuity Secured Rate Annuity First Rate Annuity Focused Growth Annuity Principal Growth Annuity Flexible Premium Deferred Annuity Tailored Income Annuity Disability Individual Disability The Protector+SM The Business ProtectorSM The Business Equity ProtectorSM LTD STD State Disability Life AD&D Dental Vision Small Business Voluntary Insurance Retirement Plans Professionals Administration Participant Services Types of Plans Technology

Tools

Application Checklist Incidence Estimator Producers Online

Compensation

Producer Bonus Program New Business Bonus Persistency Bonus Commission Scales Producer Referral Bonus Commission Estimator 2008 Commission Calendar

Producer Newsletters

Sign up to Receive Producer Newsletters Producer Connection - 2nd Quarter, 2008 Indexing vs. COLA: What's the Difference? How Interest Rates Affect LTD Pricing Does Network Size Really Matter? 3 Questions to Ask Carriers About SSDI Referrals Producer Connection Archive Spring 2008 Protector Press Reverse selling as the step toward a perfect product for your customers What's on my mind Old Fashioned Underwriting has more to offer May Is Disability Insurance Awareness Month Why I sell IDI Yes, you can help your customers become time travelers Did you know? Millions of reasons to write IDI with The Standard Change in Regional Assignments

Producer Connection is Standard Insurance Company's bi-monthly online newsletter for Employee Benefits producers.

Let us know what you think of Producer Connection and how we can make it better.

Questions to Help You Pick a RTW-focused Carrier

Nearly all group disability carriers offer return-to-work services. So how can you and your clients determine which return-to-work (RTW) program will be most effective at keeping net plan costs down by minimizing the amount of time employees spend on claim? The key, of course, is to know the right questions to ask. Here are some suggestions:

What resources has the carrier dedicated to the RTW program?

Most carriers who are serious about helping disabled employees return to work have a low ratio of claims analysts to vocational case managers. Vocational case managers help disabled employees return to work by drawing on a variety of expert resources: nurse case managers, outside physician consultants and third-party rehabilitation consultants. The Standard employs 10 claims analysts for every vocational case manager.

What’s the process for referring a disabled employee to the RTW program?

Typically, vocational case managers wait for claim analysts or nurse case managers to refer disabled employees. However, different carriers take different approaches. At The Standard, vocational case managers receive a regular report of recently opened claims and work with claim analysts and nurse case managers to determine which disabled employees are candidates for RTW. In this more proactive approach, the vocational case manager owns the process and is responsible for the outcome.

What is the role of the attending physician in the RTW process?

The business-as-usual approach is for the carrier to go to the doctor first and ask if a patient can return to work. Some carriers, like The Standard, prefer to first work with the disabled employee and employer to create a RTW plan, which is an agreement signed by the employer and employee. The carrier then tells the physician that the employee wants to go back to work and shares the plan with the physician. The physician is asked to advise the carrier if there are any reasons that the employee cannot participate in the plan or if any modifications to the plan are needed.

Want to know more?

Contact your Sales Rep to find out how The Standard can help your customers build a successful RTW program.