How Can We Help You?

We are all fairly used to hearing “how can we help you?” when we call a place of business or walk into a store. In fact, we hear it so frequently these days that we may take it for granted. So, this week we wanted to take time to thank you for being a trusted business associate, and remind you to please let us know how we can help you.

 

We are very proud of the fact that our business has been built on unparalleled personal service. We don’t take lightly the trust our associates place in us, and we are constantly looking for more ways to help improve benefits and lower health care costs.

 

We realize that your company may be struggling with issues of health and wellness or other areas of your group benefits that we could help you address effectively. Below are a few ideas of things we could help you address, and if one of these gets you thinking about something not mentioned – get in touch with us, hopefully we can help find a solution.

 

Educating employees about their benefits – Sadly, the majority of American workers don’t fully understand their health care plans (what is covered and how the plan works). In addition, many don’t understand the immense value in the benefits provided by their employer. We can help develop ideas for better educating your employees about the value they receive from the benefits you provide. This is always a part of our approach in the open enrollment process, but the education shouldn’t end there. You should utilize every available tool to help your employees be informed about their benefits, because in the end they will appreciate them more and will be wiser health care consumers.

 

Assessing your benefits package – We all realize that the health care landscape has changed dramatically in the past few years. Insurance companies are constantly updating their benefits, and sometimes it’s hard for employers to keep up. We work diligently to stay abreast of all offerings so that we can provide you with the best solutions for your needs. We recommended annual assessments of your benefits package to be sure that your needs are met in the most beneficial and cost effective way possible. Of course any time questions arise, we are always available to help as well.

 

Developing a healthier workforce – With the continuing increases in the cost of health care has come a greater focus on developing a healthier workforce. Many employers offer wellness plans, and others are contemplating such a step. In addition, many employees are looking for alternative medical treatments. We can help you find the right solutions to get your employees on track for better health.

 

Bottom line – at Preferred Benefits LLC we are here to help in whatever you might need. If something mentioned here has sparked a question or an idea, please give us a call or send an email to let us know how we can help. This personalized customer service is a cornerstone of our business. We look forward to being of service to you.

 

Valerie Reeves

Leticia Dominguez

 

PREFERRED BENEFITS LLC

TOLL-FREE 877-302-5810

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Book Review

“You are what you eat!”…How many times have we heard that, especially from our Moms when they were trying to get us to make wise food choices? Well these days it seems that many of us stay so busy that it’s hard to take time to think much about what we are eating.

 

A fascinating book came out earlier this year by Michael Pollan called In Defense of Food: An Eater’s Manifesto. It is a really interesting read, tracking why we are where we are nutritionally in this country and how we should rethink things a bit. So, you might be wondering, ‘where are we nutritionally?’ According to Pollan, we don’t really eat very much food anymore. Instead we are eating food-like substances, which are basically products that have been developed from “food,” but have been processed so much that they really aren’t of much (if any) real nutritional value any more.

 

Like any book, it’s difficult to summarize his main points in a few brief comments, so you might want to check it out for yourself. But his seven-word mantra helps give us the gist of his solution to the problem: “Eat food. Not too much. Mostly plants.” In other words, Pollan suggests that we should be eating real food, whole foods like fruits and vegetables, and that we shouldn’t eat too much. In case you think it sounds too simple, in the book you will finds lots of other great tips to help you figure out a healthy eating plan, but really when it boils down to it, remembering the mantra above is a pretty comprehensive guide.

 

In this blog we’ve discussed nutrition before. Many insurance companies are working hard to try to educate people about obesity in particular and eating habits in general. Why are they doing this? Because really, we are what we eat to a large extent. In the book, Pollan points out that health care costs have risen while food costs have decreased oven the last couple decades. He says we are spending about the same amount of money on food and health care combined, but that the amounts have switched. We used to spend much more on food and less on healthcare, and now we spend less on food and much more on health care. Pollan believes our eating habits are fueling many of our illnesses and leading to increased healthcare spending.

 

So what is a person to do? Think more about what you eat. Eating “food” doesn’t have to be more time-consuming or more expensive than eating food-like substances. It’s a matter of setting priorities and rethinking something basic that we have begun taking for granted.

 

At Preferred Benefits LLC we can help you do a realistic assessment of your current insurance portfolio. We can make suggestions that may save you money and in other cases even expand your coverage for the money you are currently spending. Such an assessment should be done annually.

 

Please contact us for a FREE assessment of your insurance portfolio. This personalized customer service is a cornerstone of our business. We look forward to being of service to you.

 

Valerie Reeves

Leticia Dominguez

 

PREFERRED BENEFITS LLC

TOLL-FREE 877-302-5810

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Top Reasons Individuals Need Disability Insurance

In America approximately 30 percent of people will become disabled during their working years. And as many as half of all personal bankruptcies are due to disability. With these figures in mind, it’s worth taking a look at disability insurance, which is often overlooked or misunderstood.

 

According to EF Moody’s disability statistics, the top five reasons for long term disability claims are as follows (source: http://www.efmoody.com/insurance/disabilitystatistics.html  July 17, 2007):

 

·           Cancer

·           Complications from pregnancy

·           Back

·           Cardiovascular

·           Depression

 

The top five reasons for short term disability claims are very similar and are:

 

·           Pregnancy (normal)

·           Pregnancy (complications)

·           Injuries (excluding back)

·           Back

·           Digestive/Intestinal

 

Our own Valerie Reeves found herself relying on short-term disability insurance at the first of the year when a fall on the ice lead to surgery and several weeks of recovery.

 

Looking at the numbers

 

In a 2003 Social Security Administration (SSA) study there were a number of sobering statistics revealed. The SSA estimates that three in ten of today’s 20 year olds will suffer a disability before reaching the age of 67. The same study revealed that three of four individuals working in the private sector do not have any long-term disability insurance benefits.

 

What does this mean? With no income from sources such as disability insurance, an employee would have to rely on his or her own personal savings in addition to state and social security disability benefits. In 2006, the average monthly replacement income received from social security disability was $977.70, (source: http://www.ssa.gov/policy/docs/statcomps/di_asr/2006/index.html#highlights  Sept. 12 2007), which equates to $11.732.40 a year. This amount is significantly lower than average monthly expenses. When assessing an individual’s monthly financial needs including house payment or rent, utilities, car payment, loans, etc., it becomes evident that additional sources of income are needed when a person becomes disabled.

 

Preferred Benefits LLC has established a relationship with American United Insurance Company® (AUL), which is offering both voluntary group long-term and short-term disability insurance coverage to eligible employers and their employees. AUL also offers both employer-paid and employee-paid group life insurance coverage. AUL’s group insurance products offer flexible solutions for an employee’s life and disability insurance needs.

 

At Preferred Benefits LLC we can help you do a realistic assessment of your current insurance portfolio. We can make suggestions that may save you money and in other cases even expand your coverage for the money you are currently spending. Such an assessment should be done annually.

 

Please contact us for a FREE assessment of your insurance portfolio. This personalized customer service is a cornerstone of our business. We look forward to being of service to you.

 

Valerie Reeves

Leticia Dominguez

 

PREFERRED BENEFITS LLC

TOLL-FREE 877-302-5810

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Considering Long Term Care Options

Research shows the cost of long term care in America has jumped about 25 percent since 2004. Many people prefer to care for loved ones in the home rather than a nursing home or assisted living situation, but no matter the method of care, the cost is great.

 

According to the Genworth Financial research findings, the expense of even just a few years in a long term care facility or the home can wipe out a family’s savings.

 

The average yearly costs for long term care among the main three options are as follows:

 

Nursing Home — $76,460 annually or $209 per day for a private room

Assisted Living Facility — $36,090 for a private, one-bedroom unit

Home Care – $43,884 per year (based on 44 hours per week of care at the average rate for a home health aide)

 

Nursing homes remain the most expensive option for long term care, and the average costs have risen 17 percent since 2004. Assisted living facilities have increased their rates by about 25 percent since 2004, while rates for certified home health aides have only risen by about four percent.

 

Of course the level of care if often dictated by the individual’s health and the extent of their needs. With the cost of healthcare continuing to increase across the board, individuals and families need to plan ahead for the cost of long term care.

 

At Preferred Benefits LLC we can help you explore your options for long term care insurance – either for yourself or a loved one. We can also help you do a realistic assessment of your current insurance portfolio. We can make suggestions that may save you money and in other cases even expand your coverage for the money you are currently spending. Such an assessment should be done annually.

 

Please contact us for a FREE assessment of your insurance portfolio. This personalized customer service is a cornerstone of our business. We look forward to being of service to you.

 

Valerie Reeves

Leticia Dominguez

 

PREFERRED BENEFITS LLC

TOLL-FREE 877-302-5810

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Seven Most Common Chronic Illnesses

Did you know…the seven most common chronic illnesses are:

 

·           Hypertension

·           Heart disease

·           Lung disease

·           Diabetes

·           Stroke

·           Mental illness

·           Cancer

 

In reviewing this list, we see that several of these chronic illnesses could be prevented by making different lifestyle choices. For example, the incidence of hypertension, heart disease and diabetes could be greatly minimized by following nutrition guidelines and exercising regularly. Other chronic illnesses, such as lung disease and some types of cancers are directly related to activities such as smoking, unprotected sun exposure and other lifestyle choices.

 

We know our inherited genes play a part in our overall health and likelihood to develop certain conditions, and we can’t change those. But, we can make educated decisions about how we live our lives to try to prevent chronic illnesses. Make a commitment to your health, become informed about good lifestyle choices, then you can live and feel better.

 

At Preferred Benefits LLC we can help you do a realistic assessment of your current insurance portfolio. We can make suggestions that may save you money and in other cases even expand your coverage for the money you are currently spending. Such an assessment should be done annually.

 

Please contact us for a FREE assessment of your insurance portfolio. This personalized customer service is a cornerstone of our business. We look forward to being of service to you.

 

Valerie Reeves

Leticia Dominguez

 

PREFERRED BENEFITS LLC

TOLL-FREE 877-302-5810

Spread the word

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