WELLESLEY, Mass., Oct. 7, 2016 /PRNewswire/ -- The U.S.
business group of Sun Life Financial hosted its fourth Sun Life
Summit to shed light on important and complex issues surrounding
potential health care policy impacts from the upcoming election.
The Summit gave perspectives on how employers can navigate upcoming
policy changes, as well as better manage disability programs while
remaining compliant with federal regulations and avoiding increased
costs due to loss of productivity.
The keynote session, "The Politics of Employee Benefits",
featured speaker Katy Spangler,
Senior Vice President, Health Policy, for the American Benefits
Council. She presented background on the health care policy stances
of each presidential candidate, while offering predictions for the
future of healthcare, and how employers will be impacted. Spangler
noted that while major changes to the Affordable Care Act are
unlikely regardless of who wins in November, under Clinton we could
see the return of the public option, a government funded insurance
plan. "Secretary Clinton would pursue efforts on a public option,
but it is unlikely she would have support in the Senate," said
Spangler. "She would look at state innovation waivers as a way to
encourage states to offer the public option."
In the roundtable panel, "Why Work is Healthy," disability
experts Dr. Jennifer Christian and
Dr. Chris Brigham joined legal and
ACA expert Stacy Barrow to discuss
the financial, physical, and societal aspects of going on
disability in the US. "Work is far more significant than just a
paycheck," said Dr. Brigham. "It gives us a reason to get up in the
morning, to relate to others, it gives us a purpose."
"In addition to worklessness being a threat to someone's
physical and mental health, it's also a threat to their social,
family, personal, and economic wellbeing," continued Dr. Christian.
"Working gives us a role in society, and most people don't
understand how toxic being away from work can be."
The last session of the Summit was conducted by Sun Life
disability and compliance experts Alexandra
Dumont and Marjory Robertson,
who presented insights on the regulatory landscape, and how
employers can navigate these complicated regulations while still
maintaining the bottom line.
"We understand there is a hunger for substantive information and
real dialogue about the issues we're all facing as brokers,
employers, and insurers," said Dan
Fishbein, President, Sun Life Financial U.S. "Our Summits
are designed to provide a cross-section of viewpoints and
expertise, providing insights and actionable steps for a healthy
workforce ."
The Sun Life Summit was broadcast live online on September 29, from the Sun Life Center for
Healthy Work in Scarborough, ME.
Over 2,300 benefits consultants, insurance professionals, and
employer representatives tuned in from across the country. Each
session of the Summit, as well as speaker background and bios, can
be viewed at www.sunlifesummit.com.
About the Sun Life Summit
The 4th Sun Life
Summit, held on September 29, 2016,
is part of a series of Summits hosted by Sun Life Financial. Sun
Life selected the topics of health policy and disability to address
the potential changes to the benefits industry with the coming
election. The inaugural Sun Life Summit, which was attended by
thousands of employers and benefits professionals in October 2013, focused on the changing health care
landscape and the impact the Affordable Care Act has on the U.S.
workplace. The 2014 Sun Life Summit explored the topic of private
exchanges, and the 2015 Sun Life Wake Up Summit focused on the
merits of the Affordable Care Act and the value of
self-insurance.
About Sun Life Financial
Sun Life Financial is a
leading international financial services organization providing a
diverse range of protection and wealth products and services to
individuals and corporate customers. Sun Life Financial has
operations in a number of markets worldwide, including Canada, the United
States, the United Kingdom,
Ireland, Hong Kong, the
Philippines, Japan,
Indonesia, India, China,
Australia, Singapore, Vietnam, Malaysia and Bermuda. Sun Life Financial Inc. trades on the
Toronto (TSX), New York (NYSE) and Philippine (PSE) stock
exchanges under the ticker symbol SLF. For more information, please
visit www.sunlife.com.
In the United States, Sun Life
Financial is one of the largest group benefits providers, serving
more than 60,000 employers in small, medium, and large workplaces
across the country. Sun Life's broad portfolio of products and
services in the U.S. includes Disability and Absence Management,
Life, Dental and Vision, Voluntary, and Stop-Loss insurance. This
includes the acquisition of Assurant Employee Benefits in Q1 2016.
For more information, please visit www.sunlife.com/us.
Media contact:
Devon Portney Fernald
Sun Life Financial U.S.
781-416-7151
devon.portney.fernald@sunlife.com
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SOURCE Sun Life Financial