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Family Share Max, an industry-first dental plan designed to help families make the most out of their dental dollars, is Assurant Employee Benefits’ latest addition to their Lifetime of Smiles® program. This innovative, new plan enables families to pull from one shared dental coverage pool, effectively giving them the ability to shift coverage to family members that need it the most. This will help families customize their benefits to meet their particular needs and budgets, replacing traditional individual maximums.
Since 1990, dental fee rate increases have outpaced inflation. A federal survey, reported in a New York Times article, Boom Times for Dentists, but Not for Teeth (Oct. 2007), showed that for the period between 1996 to 2004, the average cost of dental procedures has increased 25 percent. Consumers are now looking for ways to compensate for this increase by requesting more choices and flexibility from their dental providers.
A 2008 Omnibus survey revealed that almost two-thirds of respondents want their dental provider to allow them to pool dental dollars, rather than limiting them to individual allotments. Their rationale was that coverage needs are not the same for all family members. 58 percent of those surveyed said that one family member required more dental work and used more insurance benefits than other family members in the previous year.
Family Share Max was created as a direct response to this consumer feedback.
“[The new dental plan] allows families to take more control of their dental benefit dollars,” said Joe Sevcik, vice president of marketing - Assurant Employee Benefits. “Now, for the first time ever, you can spend your family’s dental dollars the way you want. Considering the rising costs of dental care and the current challenging economic situation, this is an especially appealing option.”
Employees are not restricted by complicated rollover plans, such as limitations for members who do not exceed the maximum threshold, issues with accessing rollover dollars the very next year, and requirements for preventive care before rollover dollars are available.
“It is no longer necessary to put off important dental work because of individual dental coverage limits,” said James Gimarelli, D.M.D., vice president of dental at Assurant Employee Benefits. “By allowing families to prioritize the dental needs of individual family members, Family Share Max can help improve the timely care of dental issues without breaking the bank.”
Assurant Employee Benefits, a recognized leader in the small- to mid-size market, has taken the forefront in helping these businesses compete with their larger competitors. Small- to mid-size business owners can now offer employees a simpler dental plan with no pre-qualifiers or maximum thresholds. As an addition to a benefits package, dental insurance is a way for businesses to affordably help protect the health of employees. This can also favorably affect productivity as well. |
