AB 565: Group life insurance: required provisions.

Existing law provides for the regulation of specified insurance products, including group life insurance, by the Insurance Commissioner. Existing law provides that insurance under a group life insurance policy may be extended to insure the dependents of each insured employee under the group policy, as specified. Existing law defines a dependent for these purposes as including the employees spouse and all children from birth until 26 years of age, or a child 26 years of age or older who is both incapable of self-sustaining employment by reason of intellectual disability or physical handicap and chiefly dependent upon the employee for support and maintenance, as specified.

This bill would clarify that for dependent children over the age of majority the group policyholder would be authorized to elect coverage at age variations up to the limiting age.

Existing law defines a waiver of premium benefit or a waiver of monthly deduction benefit under a life insurance contract as a supplemental benefit that operates to safeguard a life insurance contract against lapse when the insured becomes totally disabled, as defined by the supplemental benefit, and continues until the end of the insureds disability or the period specified by the supplemental benefit, consistent with specified restrictions. Existing law requires, if the insureds total disability begins before the insured attains 60 years of age, the insurer to waive all premiums or monthly deductions due for the period that the insured continues to be totally disabled. Existing law requires, if the insureds total disability begins when the insured is 60 years of age or older, the insurer to waive all premiums or monthly deductions due for the period that the insured continues to be totally disabled up to 65 years of age.

This bill would require an insurer, for an insured who becomes totally disabled before attaining 60 years of age and is covered by a group life insurance policy that includes a supplemental benefit, to waive all premiums or monthly deductions due for the period of total disability up to the time the insured attains 65 years of age. The bill would also permit an insurer to collect premiums or monthly deductions from an insured who becomes totally disabled on or after 60 years of age and is covered by a group life insurance policy that includes a supplemental benefit. The bill would require an insurer offering a renewal for a group life insurance policy issued prior to January 1, 2017, that contains a supplemental benefit to offer the employer a continuation of the in-force supplemental benefit, and would authorize the insurer to concurrently offer the group policyholder the option to change the supplemental benefit to either waive or collect premiums or monthly deductions as described above.