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Human Resources

2007 Life Insurance Coverage

The State of Iowa is pleased to provide full-time employees with a Basic term life insurance policy at no cost to the employee. Additional (supplemental) coverage can be purchased at group rates through payroll deduction. You may be asked to provide Evidence of Insurability.

NOTE: Life insurance coverage is not available for Regents employees.

The information contained on this page is a summary of life insurance benefits and is not intended to replace the Booklet Certificate. In the event of a discrepancy, Prudential Insurance Company of America's Group Policy will control. See the State of Iowa Life Insurance handbook.

Who's Eligible?
What Does It Cost?
Who Provides Life Insurance?
General Information
Amount of Coverage
Supplemental Life Insurance Monthly Premiums
Continuation of Life Insurance
To File a Claim
For More Information

 

Who's Eligible?

Probationary or permanent employees who work 30 hours or more per week and part time employees of the General Assembly are eligible for employer-sponsored term life insurance. Your coverage is in effect for as long as you remain in an eligible class as defined in the group policy. You may be able to continue your life insurance coverage when you leave State employment. See Continuation of Life Insurance for more information.

You must complete a life insurance enrollment form and may have to satisfy a waiting period (see table below) before your insurance becomes effective. See the life insurance enrollment form instructions.

If You Are:
Your Coverage is Effective:

A new employee

The first day of the calendar month following the completion of one month of continuous service in an eligible class.

A part time employee of the General Assembly The first day of the calendar month following the completion of one month of continuous service in an eligible class.
A General Assembly member The January 1st following the date of election.

 

What Does it Cost?

The state pays the entire premium for your Basic life insurance coverage (except for part-time General Assembly members). You can purchase Supplemental (additional) life insurance through payroll deduction. You are responsible for 100% of the cost of supplemental life insurance. Additional information about Basic and Supplemental life insurance is provided in the following sections.

Who Provides Life Insurance?

Life insurance is provided through a group term life insurance policy issued to the State of Iowa by Prudential Life Insurance Company of America.

General Information

What is Term Life Insurance?
Term insurance is a life insurance policy that pays only if you die during the term of the policy, for example, while you are actively employed by the State. At the end of the term, the policy terminates.

 

Accelerated Death Benefit

If you are diagnosed with a terminal illness and your life expectancy is six (6) months or less, you may elect to receive a portion of your life insurance proceeds while you are still living. This Living Benefit Option will reduce the benefits payable upon your death. See the booklet certificate for more information about this benefit.

Accidental Death and Dismemberment

An amount equivalent to your Basic and Supplemental life coverage is provided for accidental death and dismemberment. In addition, your policy provides for an additional payment to your beneficiaries if you lose your life in a motor vehicle accident while wearing a seat belt or riding in a seat protected by an airbag. See the booklet certificate for more information about this benefit.

Life Insurance Beneficiary

Please be sure your beneficiary information is current. To change your beneficiary designation, complete a new Group Insurance Beneficiary Designation/Change form or see your Personnel Assistant. Your beneficiary designation must be submitted to your Personnel Assistant before it becomes effective.

Imputed Income (for UE/IUP employees only)

If your total (basic and supplemental) group life insurance coverage is over $50,000 and you pay for Supplemental life insurance on a pretax basis, you will have imputed income reported to the IRS. The value (determined by a cost table from the IRS) of the life insurance over $50,000 will be reported as imputed income and will be subject to taxes. The monthly value increases with age from $.05 per $1,000 of insurance for those under age 25 to $2.06 per $1,000 for those ages 70 and over.

Amount of Coverage

Basic and Supplemental life insurance coverage amounts begin to decrease starting at age 65.

Basic Life Insurance

You are eligible for $10,000 of group term life insurance coverage ($20,000 for UE/IUP and SPOC employees) if you are under age 65. You are enrolled when you are a member of an eligible class, have satisfied any applicable waiting period, and have submitted your Basic Life Card within 31 days of your employment. The State pays the entire premium for Basic coverage.

If you do not submit your life insurance card within 31 days of employment, you will have to provide "evidence of insurability" to Prudential. Coverage will become effective the first of the month following Prudential's approval.

If you choose not to complete a Basic Life Card, you must complete and sign a Waiver of Life and Long Term Disability form.

Supplemental Life Insurance

You can obtain additional life insurance coverage by participating in the Supplemental life insurance plan. This plan allows you to purchase additional life insurance in $5,000 increments. The maximum amount of Supplemental life insurance available varies by bargaining unit.

You can obtain the first $5,000 of Supplemental Life Insurance without providing "evidence of insurability" if you apply within the first 31 days of employment. If you do not apply for the first $5,000 of Supplemental Life Insurance within 31 days of employment, you will have to provide "evidence of insurability" to Prudential. This coverage becomes effective once you satisfy any applicable waiting period.

You can apply for additional coverage at any time. However, you will have to provide "evidence of insurability" to Prudential. The effective date for supplemental coverage will be determined in relation to the date Prudential approves the evidence of insurability.

The Evidence of Insurability form must be mailed or faxed directly to Prudential at the address or fax number provided at the top of the form. Click here for Evidence of Insurability Short Form Instructions if you have questions about how to complete this form.

When you apply for any amount of supplemental life insurance coverage, you must also complete an Application for Supplemental Life form; you will give this form to your Personnel Assistant, who will keep a file copy and forward the original to the Department of Administrative Services.

Things to consider about how much insurance to purchase:

If you're trying to determine how much insurance to purchase, here are a few factors to consider. This benefit is meant to help those who would suffer financially if you weren't there to help pay the bills. Don't forget to include:

  • Mortgage, debts, food, clothes, and utility bills (what portion of these are paid from your salary)
  • Housekeeping bills (if you contribute to the running of the household by performing household tasks or running errands)
  • Extra child care expenses (to give your spouse some time off)
  • Savings for children's education
  • The cost of a funeral
  • To enroll in Supplemental Life Insurance

Once you decide on the amount of Supplemental life insurance that you need, complete the appropriate forms:

Supplemental Life Insurance Monthly Premiums

Current supplemental insurance premiums are provided for informational purposes only and are subject to change based on the terms of the Group Policy. Premiums may change periodically.

Supplemental Life Insurance Premiums for AFSCME, AFSCME Judicial, PPME, and Non Contract
Supplemental Life Insurance Premiums for UE/IUP
Supplemental Life Insurance Premiums for SPOC

Continuation of Life Insurance

Conversion

If you leave State employment, you can continue your life insurance coverage by converting your group term life insurance to an individual whole life policy. Your Personnel Assistant will complete the employer section of the Notice of Group Life Conversion Privilege; you are then responsible for contacting Prudential and submitting any required information directly to them.
Visit Prudential's web site for rates and other information about Converting Group Term Life Insurance to Individual Insurance.

Portability

When you leave State employment for reasons other than disability or retirement, you may be able to continue your supplemental life insurance through a portability provision. This provision is available if you:

  • have $20,000 or more of Supplemental Life coverage;
  • are under the age of 70; and
  • are actively at work on the day before your employment ends.


Your Personnel Assistant will complete the employer section of the Life Insurance Portability form; you are then responsible for contacting Prudential and submitting any required information to them.

To File a Claim

In the event of a loss, contact the agency's Personnel Assistant. The Personnel Assistant will complete the employer section of the Group Life Claim form and give a Beneficiary Statement to each beneficiary. To ensure proper completion of the claim form, please refer to the Life Claim Form Instructions.

The completed Beneficiary Statement is returned to the Personnel Assistant. The Personnel Assistant will submit the entire claim, including an original death certificate, to:

Iowa Department of Administrative Services
Human Resources Enterprise
Attn: Life Insurance
Hoover State Office Building
Des Moines, IA 50319-0150

Prudential Insurance makes benefits payouts in one sum with Prudential's Alliance Account. They also offer alternative settlement options for payment of life insurance benefits.

For More Information

For more information about your coverage, please see the State of Iowa Life Insurance handbook or contact your Personnel Assistant.

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