America's Benefit Specialist July 2023

PRODUCT NEWS

Options to Purchase Additional Living Benefits—Including access to a portion of the death benefit should a policyholder become terminally ill, and the ability to have their premiums waived if the policyholder becomes disabled. Recent research has demonstrated a significant gap be tween the amount of life insurance consumers have versus the amount they believe they need. The gap stands at an all time high of 18 points, more than double the gap 13 years ago. “Often the amount of life insurance coverage in place is de termined by how much individuals can afford to pay in pre miums, versus the amount of income they need to replace and doesn’t reflect a changing financial picture,” said Aman da Kuhl, SVP and head of Life Products. “The competitive pricing on this new suite of term life products ensures clients can secure more value from their coverage and access policy features that support bigger goals, like keeping a business afloat, saving for retirement or a child’s college education.” For more information, visit www.newyorklife.com. SPROUTT ADDS GENERATIVE AI CAPABILITIES TO ITS AGENT PLATFORM Sproutt, a company that modernizes life insurance for agencies, agents and their customers, has announced the development of a groundbreaking AI engine, currently avail able only to limited groups, to boost its SmartLife platform. The platform’s capabilities will be supercharged by genera tive AI technology, empowering agents and agencies with more predictive product fulfillment and client-engagement capabilities based on Large Language Models (LLM) technol ogy. The introduction of AI will revolutionize the way agents interact with clients and marks a significant milestone for Sproutt, further demonstrating its commitment to providing technology solutions within the life insurance ecosystem. Sproutt’s SmartLife platform is leveraging the power of generative AI to create unique and personalized client com munications based on multiple data sources and previous interactions with clients. By evaluating this data, the platform will generate relevant and timely content that agents can utilize to enhance customer engagement and sales. Events such as a client’s policy anniversary, renewal date, birthday and even local sports team news can be factored in to trigger precise communications. SmartLife’s user-friendly interface enables agents to easily navigate and access the information they need to be successful. The platform will also be boosted by AI-driven product recommendations, employing multiple data sources to deliver tailored product solutions for each client. Predictive modeling capabilities will enable agents to anticipate future client needs, further elevating their potential. Leveraging AI for product fulfillment will overhaul the insurance sales

process, increase STP rates, and effectively transform agents into experts. Learn more at www.sproutt.com.

FRINGE BENEFIT GROUP ANNOUNCES THE CONTRACTORS PLAN ICHRA Fringe Benefit Group recently announced The Contractors Plan ICHRA, a flexible, cost-effective and compliant solution for Service Contract Act (SCA) and Davis-Bacon Act employ ers that face challenges in providing health benefits to their employees. By offering Individual Coverage Health Reim bursement Arrangements as part of the fringe benefit pack age, prevailing-wage contractors can fulfill their obligations while providing valuable health benefits to their employees. Employees can now choose their own individual health in surance plans based on their needs and not a one-size-fits-all group health plan. The Contractors Plan, Fringe Benefit Group’s flagship brand, is a comprehensive third-party administrator, offering retirement plans and major medical, dental, vision and life insurance designed specifically for government contractors. The addition of the ICHRA option to The Contractors Plan further expands the company’s offering. The Contractors Plan ICHRA solves several problems. Tradi tional group health insurance plans can be expensive, partic ularly for prevailing-wage contractors that are often required to provide bona fide fringe benefits as part of their employ ees’ compensation package. By offering ICHRA as part of the fringe benefit package, employers can fulfill their obligation, stay compliant, stay in budget, greatly reduce time spent administering group benefits, and provide valuable health benefits to their employees. The Contractors Plan ICHRA simplifies benefits adminis tration by allowing employers to focus on managing reim bursements rather than navigating complex group health insurance plans. Additionally, brokers can assist with the setup and ongoing management of ICHRA accounts, further easing the administrative burden for employers. For more information, visit www.fbg.com, www.thecontrac torsplan.com or www.theamericanworker.com.

SECURIAN FINANCIAL AND RECLAIM HEALTH USE ANALYTICS TO HELP CUSTOMERS GET THE MOST OUT OF THEIR SUPPLEMENTAL HEALTH BENEFITS Securian Financial is teaming up with Reclaim Health to increase benefit utilization for Securian Financial’s supple-

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