Group disability insurers may, possibly, be getting a little relief from claims related to back pain and joint problems.
Back pain and joint problems accounted for 22% of Unum’s group long-term disability (LTD) insurance claims in 2017. That’s down from a 22.5% share of Unum group LTD claims in 2016, and down from a 23.1% share in 2015.
Unum provides group disability coverage for more U.S. workers than any other carrier. The Chattanooga, Tennessee-based insurer included the 2017 figures in a new analysis of its group disability claim data. Unum prepares the disability claim cause analysis every year in May, to help support the disability insurance community’s annual Disability Insurance Awareness Month campaign.
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Greg Breter, a senior vice president at Unum, said in a statement accompanying the new analysis that the company has seen a big increase in the incidence of group disability claims related to back and joint disorders in the past 10 years.