I recently visited a long-time client who had 150 employees. The CEO decided to eliminate the employee LTD plan. He cited his tight budget and lack of LTD claims, so he felt he could reallocate those premiums to mitigate costs.

I asked him questions designed to highlight his values as an employer. I asked if his employees are an integral part of his company's success. He said yes. I asked if he knew his employees on a personal level. He said he is very involved in helping them in all aspects of their lives. I asked if one of his management employees became disabled, how would he decide how much to pay them? He said he would continue their salary, or some percentage of it, until they returned to work. If a critical employee was disabled, would he need to hire a replacement employee? Yes, he eventually would. I asked when he would terminate the disabled employee, noting the burden to the family.

My goal was to show how his choice put his business and reputation at risk. He continued their LTD plan.

Joseph E. Ellis, Sr CBIZ, Inc.

When the unthinkable happens

I worked on a case with a young single mother of a five-year-old son. Life was always hard for her, but she was tenacious and ended up landing a job at a local insurance company. Things were going well. She purchased a home in a small town. Her son was just beginning school and for the first time in her life, things were getting easier financially.

She had chronic back issues and at the time of the claim, she was taking medication, which masked a major problem, which grew to be severe pancreatitis.

She walked into Wal-Mart one day and was ambulanced out. She would never work again.

Fortunately, her employer provided group benefits with a 60 percent coverage and had a strong belief that each employee needs supplemental coverage. She was fully insured between the two contracts.

As a result, she still owns her home, her son is active in school athletics, she owns a reliable vehicle, and her retirement accounts, although underfunded, are still intact.