Canada Life cutting group health premiums to support Canadians, SMEs
The Canada Life Assurance Co. is cutting its health insurance premiums for its employer-sponsored benefits plans to support small- and medium-sized businesses facing hardship as a result of the coronavirus pandemic.
“We recognize that many businesses are challenged right now and we are wholeheartedly committed to supporting them however we can,” said Jeff Macoun, president and chief operating officer at Canada Life, in a press release.
“Over one million Canadians were laid off in March alone and financial insecurity is growing. These premium reductions will give more than 26,000 of our business customers some much-needed financial relief, both to their business and to maintaining valued coverage for their employees. Unlike premium deferrals, these savings do not need to be repaid later and reflect that some health-care service providers have shifted to virtual treatment, while others are offering more limited services.”
Read: Should plan sponsors shift their benefits plan spend during coronavirus?
The insurer is providing eligible plan sponsors with a 50 per cent reduction in dental premiums and a 20 per cent reduction in vision and extended health-care premiums. The reductions will be applied in May for the month of April and are retroactive to April 1.
Prescription drugs are excluded from the cuts because the services are “essential” and claims numbers haven’t dropped. However, Canada Life said it would continue to reassess those factors on a monthly basis until the pandemic and its impact on claims has ended.