Survey: Americans Underestimate the Risk of Disability

Anthem, Inc. survey finds most Americans fail to protect their
income with disability insurance

INDIANAPOLIS–(BUSINESS WIRE)–When we think about protecting ourselves and our families, we think
about locking our doors, buying a safe car, exercising, or even wearing
sunscreen. But do we think about protecting our incomes? According to a
survey conducted by Anthem, while 90 percent of respondents say they
lock their doors and windows, just 40 percent of Americans have
disability insurance, which could protect them financially if they were
unable to work.

May is Disability Insurance Awareness Month, a time to consider that,
while disability can seem unlikely, it’s more common than many people
think. According to a 2012 FBI report, the risk of a home robbery is one
in 36, but people think they’re more likely to be robbed than to become
disabled. Unfortunately, more than one in four of today’s 20 year-olds
will become disabled before they retire, per statistics from the Center
for Disability Awareness.

“It’s our job at Anthem to help people protect against the
unpredictable,” said Mike Wozny, president of Anthem Life. “Financial
wellness is an important part of overall wellbeing, and disability
insurance can help alleviate financial stress.”

It’s difficult to protect yourself from what you’re not expecting, and
disability is a commonly underestimated threat. Most people think of
workplace injuries or accidents when they think of disability, but the
reality is 90 percent of disabilities are caused by illness, such as
arthritis, back pain or cancer.

For this reason, integrating disability and medical benefits may also
help employees get back to work sooner and help employers control costs
of absenteeism. More than 80 percent of employers using integrated
benefits agree this approach is valuable to both employees and
employers, according to an August 2015 study by Employee Benefit News.

“Disability benefits provide peace of mind and financial protection, but
they also help connect the dots for overall health,” said Wozny. “As one
of the nation’s leading benefit companies, we recognize that physical,
emotional and financial health are interconnected. The integration of
health and disability plans helps consumers get back on their feet
faster while providing a stronger financial foothold.”

This report presents the findings of a telephone omnibus survey using
the field services of Opinion Research Corporation, from April 16-20,
2015. The study was conducted using two probability samples: randomly
selected landline telephone numbers and randomly selected mobile (cell)
telephone numbers. The combined sample consists of 1,010 adults (18
years old and older) living in the continental United States. Of the
1,010 interviews, 508 were from the landline sample and 502 from the
cell phone sample. The margin of error for the sample of 1,010 is ± 3.08
percent at the 95 percent confidence level. This means that if we were
to replicate the study, we would expect to get the same results within
3.08 percentage points 95 times out of 100

About Anthem, Inc.

Anthem is working to transform health care with trusted and caring
solutions. Our health plan companies deliver quality products and
services that give their members access to the care they need. With more
than 68 million people served by its affiliated companies, including
more than 37 million enrolled in its family of health plans, Anthem is
one of the nation’s leading health benefits companies. For more
information about Anthem’s family of companies, please visit www.antheminc.com/companies.

Contacts

Anthem, Inc.
Tony Felts, 317-287-6036
Tony.Felts@anthem.com