The Council for Disability Awareness recently released the results of the 2011 Long-Term Disability Claims Review, which found 2.6 percent more individuals approved for long-term disability insurance benefits in 2010 than the previous year.
"The 2011 Claims Review results reflect the continued challenges posed by the economy and the aging of the workforce," said CDA president Barry Lundquist. He noted increases in claims made and claim length have been exacerbated by economic difficulties in returning to work and growing incidence of complex and severe conditions.
More than half of participating companies indicated increased claims in 2010. The review assembles data from approximately three-quarters of the commercial disability insurance industry, and determined the vast majority of new claims, nearly 90 percent, resulted from illness rather than accident.
Musculoskeletal and connective tissue conditions were the leading cause of claims, with heart, nervous system and circulatory system conditions also accounting for for many.
Fewer employers provided traditional group long-term disability programs and fewer employees participated. These factors, coupled with job loss, are believed to have caused the small decrease in the number of insured.
