Iowa Companies Combine Efforts to Offer Life Insurance Coverage as Part of Annual Employee Benefits Enrollment Period

WEST DES MOINES, Iowa, Jul 12, 2011 (BUSINESS WIRE) -- Three Iowa-based companies have partnered to make purchasing life insurance more efficient and more readily available to consumers.

West Des Moines-based companies Central Financial Group and Aviva USA have combined efforts with wellness benefits provider HealthCheck360 deg to offer life insurance coverage to HealthCheck360 deg clients. Dubuque-based HealthCheck360 deg provides companies nationwide an optional wellness component to their benefits program that enables employees to assess, monitor and improve their overall health and wellness. When employees sign up for the benefit, they complete a biometric assessment followed by a paper or online survey covering their health and lifestyle information. This establishes an individual baseline wellness level.

Central Financial Group proposed that the three companies work together to offer HealthCheck360 deg participants the additional option of purchasing life insurance as part of the wellness program. Aviva agreed to allow those HealthCheck360 deg customers to use results of their biometric screening as the paramedical exam normally required for life insurance underwriting.

"We believe this is a first-of-its-kind offer allowing employees the ability to purchase a fully underwritten universal life insurance policy as part of the annual benefits enrollment process," said Jim Wachtel, national sales director of HealthCheck360 deg . "The life insurance is individually owned, so unlike group term insurance many employers offer through their benefits program, these policies are not contingent upon ongoing employment with the initial employer."

Employees apply for and own the insurance policy -- paying premiums directly to Aviva -- eliminating administrative costs for employers.

Central Financial Group serves as the agency through which HealthCheck360 deg customers purchase Aviva's life insurance policies. Ken Smith, director of multi-line services at Central Financial Group, said it was a natural fit to bring together an industry-leading wellness benefit provider with an industry-leading life insurance provider for the benefit of health-conscious employers and employees.

"Each of these three companies has an area of expertise that, when combined together, enables us to deliver our products and services to the consumer in a unique and easy way,'' Smith said. "Another thing that makes this an ideal program is the wellness component. HealthCheck360 deg is a wellness benefit program, and Aviva offers a feature on its life insurance products called Wellness for Life."

Wellness for Life is an optional feature on a life insurance policy that can reduce out-of-pocket costs of insurance over time. The policy's rates decline if the insured meets health-conscious criteria like visiting the doctor every other year for physicals, and cost savings are even greater if the insured simply maintains his or her weight. HealthCheck360 deg 's wellness program helps clients meet those criteria.

"Good drivers save money on their car insurance, and we believe people living a healthy lifestyle should save on life insurance as well," said Aviva's Mike Miller, executive vice president of Sales and Distribution. "The innovative Wellness for Life Program is just one of the ways we are putting people before policies. Given the popularity of Wellness for Life, it makes perfect sense for us to partner with one of our key distribution partners, Central Financial Group, and a wellness benefit provider to help meet the individual life insurance needs of HealthCheck360 deg 's customers."

About Central Financial Group Central Financial Group provides life insurance and financial services to businesses and individuals who need quality products and professional services to help them prosper and achieve financial security. The firm has representation nationally and is headquartered in West Des Moines.

About HealthCheck360 deg HealthCheck360 deg is a wellness solution that allows employer clients to manage their benefits like they manage their business -- with employee accountability, specific goals and measurable outcomes. As a result, they average more than 80 percent employee participation rate and the majority of participants improve their health in subsequent years in the program. Based in Dubuque, Iowa, HealthCheck360 deg conducts business nationally.

About Aviva USA Aviva USA is a sales leader of indexed life insurance and indexed annuities. Headquartered in West Des Moines, Iowa, Aviva USA also has offices in Topeka, Kan., and Melville, N.Y. Aviva USA has approximately 1 million customers and employs more than 1,500 people across the country. Aviva USA is part of Aviva plc and can trace its presence in the United States back to 1896.

SOURCE: Aviva USA

Aviva Media Contacts: 
        Kevin Waetke, Public Relations Director 
        Office: 515-342-3822 
        Cell: 515-782-3256 
        kevin.waetke@avivausa.com 
        or 
        Steve Carlson, Public Relations Manager 
        Office: 515-342-6403 
        Cell: 515-782-6317 
        steven.carlson@avivausa.com
        

Copyright Business Wire 2011