Public employers can have diverse needs for the security of their families that may not be fully met by the pension plan and other employment benefits. The NCPERS Life Insurance Plan is uniquely and specially designed to fill in the gaps where traditional plans are insufficient, and as such is an extremely valuable asset to retirement plan participants. The Plan provides its maximum benefits when pension survivor benefits are lowest, and coverage continues into retirement when much or all of the member and dependent group life insurance disappears.

This unique Plan is available to participating employers of retirement systems that are members of NCPERS, and is not available elsewhere.

The rates are based on over 30 years of favorable claims experience, backed up by substantial accumulated dividends used to support the Plan, and the mass purchasing power of a group of 93,000 employees/ retirees. We are confident that comparable benefits are not available at this price from other sources.

Yes. The Plan is fully insured and reserved by Prudential Financial, one of the world's largest insurance companies. The annual premiums exceed $15 million per year. Additionally, NCPERS has over 30% of annual premiums in reserve supporting the program. The Plan maintains or exceeds actuarially recommended reserves.

No. The benefits are fully insured by Prudential Financial, who is solely responsible for claims payment. American Administrative Group administers the Plan, and is solely responsible for the administration that they perform.

No. All enrollment and other NCPERS Life Insurance Plan expenses are borne by the active and retired NCPERS Life Plan participants.

The Plan benefits are payable in addition to other benefits, and the design of the Plan provides maximum protection when retirement benefits are smallest. Much of the interest comes from members with families, members with chronic health conditions, members with less than ten years in the retirement system and most retirees and their spouses.

This is allowable under the Plan. All the members/employees are automatically enrolled in the Plan, and the sponsoring organization receives a monthly bill for the premiums.

Yes. However, this has not happened in the thirty-six plus years of the Plan. On eight occasions the benefits have been increased without a premium change. The Plan, that originally started with a $6 premium is upgraded every few years for inflation, and members are given the opportunity to upgrade to a Plan with proportionally higher benefits and premiums.

Since there is no retirement plan contribution or cost, bidding is not ordinarily required. In states that require bidding regardless of cost, this Plan is often considered to be a "Sole Available Provider" Plan, and exempt from the bid process because its history and design make it extremely difficult to duplicate from other sources.

NCPERS sponsors the Plan, and is the policyholder. Retirement systems must be an NCPERS member to participate. Since NCPERS is a non-profit organization organized to provide education and support of public employee retirement systems, it has no role in the administration or management of the NCPERS Life Insurance Plan. NCPERS is compensated solely for the use of its name, service marks and mailing lists. NCPERS exercises general oversight of the Plan, and its interest is that the Plan remains a viable and beneficial Plan for it membership, and that the logo and service marks are used tastefully and properly.