The Principal Financial Group Introduces Voluntary Vision Insurance, Emphasizing Importance of Eye Health
August 22, 2006 (Des Moines, Iowa) — An estimated 251 percent of children have an undetected vision problem that can lead to difficulties in school, yet many of these children don't have access to vision benefits. Voluntary group vision insurance from the Principal Financial Group® is now an affordable option for parents and the 832 percent of individuals with uncorrected vision impairments who could be helped with glasses or contact lenses.
"August is National Children's Eye Health and Safety Month making it a great time to introduce vision insurance to a broader group of individuals," said Theresa McConeghey, vision product director for The Principal®. "Voluntary vision insurance is an affordable way for employees to access insurance protection and schedule yearly eye exams for themselves and their dependents."
Vision insurance goes beyond glasses and contacts, covering eye exams that can often detect more serious health problems such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes, thyroid disease and others3. Through vision insurance from The Principal, customers automatically receive access to discounts on vision services with VSP Access Plan, the nation's largest provider of eye care service. Vision offerings can be tailored to fit each company and some employers may chose to offer voluntary vision insurance along with the personalized needs-based enrollment experience of Principal Work SecureSM.
"Voluntary vision is the latest addition to a growing suite of voluntary worksite products allowing employers to offer benefit options that attract and retain employees, without incurring additional benefit costs," noted McConeghey.
About Principal Work Secure
Principal Work Secure partners a salaried Employee Benefits Specialist from the Principal Financial Group with the broker and the employer to put together a comprehensive enrollment strategy for the voluntary benefits the employer chooses to offer employees. Employees are then provided with access to a team of insurance and financial professionals at the workplace. Using an interactive needs analysis tool, these financial professionals help employees identify gaps in financial protection and insurance including, vision, dental, disability and life, to prioritize and select the most appropriate type of voluntary benefits both inside and outside of the group program.
For more information about voluntary vision visit www.principal.com
About The Principal Financial Group
The Principal Financial Group® (The Principal®)4 is a leader in offering businesses, individuals and institutional clients a wide range of financial products and services, including retirement and investment services, life and health insurance and banking through its diverse family of financial services companies and national network of financial professionals. A member of the Fortune 500, the Principal Financial Group has $206 billion in assets under management5 and serves some 16.3 million customers worldwide from offices in Asia, Australia, Europe, Latin America and the United States. Principal Financial Group, Inc. is traded on the New York Stock Exchange under the ticker symbol PFG. For more information, visit www.principal.com.
1) Vision Council of America Web site, www.checkyearly.com
2) National Institutes of Health Study, published May 2006
3) Vision Service Plan, February 2006
4) "The Principal Financial Group" and “The Principal” are registered service marks of Principal Financial Services, Inc., a member of the Principal Financial Group.
5) As of June 30, 2006
