In most cases, a short-term disability will result in reduced income for you and your family. If you become disabled, how long could you pay bills and provide for your family with reduced earnings? How long will the disability benefit from your employer-sponsored insurance plan last? Do you have enough set aside to cover the additional expenses caused by a disability, maintain your lifestyle and cover everyday living expenses?

More often than we think, many people in today’s workforce suffer a short-term disability.

23.6 million disabling injuries were reported in 2006; 3.7 million of those were work related.

• Approximately 45 percent of all disabling injuries occurred in and around the home, the most common place of injury.
• The cost of unintentional injuries in 2006 was $652.1 billion.

Injury Facts, National Safety Council, 2008 Edition

A disability plan from Colonial Life can help you prepare for a short-term disability. Benefits from your Colonial Life disability plan can help supplement your income to help you pay the following expenses.

• Mortgage or rent payments
• Utility bills and other household expenses
• Food, clothing and other necessities
• Co-payments
• Travel and lodging expenses for treatment

Colonial Life's Short Term Disability Income Protection Insurance is an individual disability plan. With this plan, you (the employee) can choose the plan design that best meets your needs. There is no employer contribution for this plan; the employee pays the premium.

The Individual Short Term Disability Plan offers two plan options, a partial disability benefit and higher levels of disability coverage.

• On- or off-job accident and sickness coverage
• Off-job accident and off-job sickness coverage

This plan is designed to supplement your existing insurance coverage by replacing up to 66 2/3% of your income if you become disabled. Benefits from this plan are paid on a monthly basis, up to $5,000 per month. You're guaranteed to be issued coverage at 66 2/3% of your income up to $3,000 a month. Benefit periods 3, 6 or 12 months.

• The partial disability benefit allows employees to more easily transition back into the work environment after total disability has been paid for one month.
• The waiver of premium feature allows us to waive insureds' premium payments after they have been totally disabled or qualify for partial disability benefits for more than 90 consecutive days. We waive premiums for the policy and any attached riders while insureds are disabled and receiving benefits.

This coverage is portable, which means that if you change jobs or retire, you can take this plan with you. Your premiums will not increase as you get older, and your coverage is guaranteed renewable up to age 70 as long as premiums are paid when due or within the grace period. Your premium can be changed only if we change it on all policies of this kind in force in the state where the policy was issued.