"I have all the Aflac policies and the Legal Resources. The Aflac has been very beneficial to my family when needed and helped bridge the gap of what the insurance paid and money out of pocket. It has definitely paid off for my family. I took out the Legal Resources this year and used it to have a new will drawn up and it more than paid for itself for just that one use."
Penny Hinkle, Registrar
Atlee High School

"We have taken advantage of the Aflac policies offered to county employees. My family has critical care, accident, and cancer insurance. Each year we take advantage of the wellness benefit, which helps offset the cost of the policies. In addition, we have used the accident policy for a car accident my husband and I were involved in. This helped with medical bills related to the accident. We were also able to use the accident policy for our son who needed stitches after a playground fall. Overall, the process is very easy and forgiving. If you forget to put in a wellness claim you can be paid retroactively. I just filed all of the wellness benefits for my entire family for each policy for 2020-2023. There was no issue with having to go back four years. We are very happy with the coverage and customer service that Aflac provides."
Amy W. Couillard M. Ed., M. T.
Career Counselor
Atlee High School

"I have used Aflac Accident Insurance for the past six years in my previous school division and in Hanover. It has been a lifesaver for my family, especially because I have a very accident-prone child. It is not extremely expensive each month for coverage yet pays out a good amount if there is an injury. When my daughter broke her wrist, we were reimbursed approximately $2000 when everything was said and done. You can claim x-rays, MRIs, hospital stays, fractures, and many other injuries. So, if you have a young child that is accident-prone, it could be worth it to have this extra layer of protection. However, even if you have no accident during the year, you can still receive $60 per family member just for them attending a yearly free check-up such as a yearly physical, well visit for child, mammogram, etc. So, for my family of 4, I am guaranteed $240 for appointments I do not have copays for and go to anyhow. It has definitely been worth it for my family."
Stephanie Robertson, M.Ed.
Intervention Counselor

"I was initially skeptical of the Legal Resources coverage, but I put it to the test. They assigned me to a law firm that expertly handled tasks such as drafting a will, creating a trust, and adding my home to the trust. Recently, we utilized the coverage for my young adult son, who needed legal representation for an excessive speeding charge. The entire process was covered with zero out-of-pocket costs. My overall savings thus far are well over $7,000. The peace of mind this coverage offers is priceless. It's a benefit that no employee should go without!"
Denise D.
Teacher

"I have had additional accident and cancer insurance for multiple years. The reimbursement process is straightforward. I have even gone back to request the wellness benefits for past years for both policies when I've forgotten to claim them during the covered year. If you have a spouse or child on your policy as well, you can claim wellness benefits for them as well. This means that most of your policy premiums basically end up being reimbursed. You get coverage for much less by participating in annual check-ups and screenings.
We have had one actual accident coverage claim that went smoothly. We were able to submit a claim when our oldest needed a cat-scan after a bike accident. Since he was found to have had a concussion, that was a covered claim under the accident insurance. I submitted that claim months after it happened . I had forgotten that our additional coverage covered concussions. There was no problem with the delayed coverage claim.
I greatly appreciate being able to get additional coverage and security for my family in an affordable way thanks to the wellness benefits feature. We will continue to participate in this valuable program."
Jessica Jennings

"AFLAC has been a huge help to my family by enabling us to pay for the medical expenses and to help reimburse use for simple things like gas money traveling back and forth to the hospital over this last spring. It is easy to use, the communication and they payment are in a timely manner."
Janet Lea Stanley
Director of Choirs - LMS

"Nationwide Pet Insurance has been a valuable benefit to my family for four years. When our two dogs were unexpectedly hospitalized within days of each other, deductibles were met quickly and reimbursements were processed swiftly. Since then, one of our dogs uses a vet prescribed food. It is costly out of pocket, but Nationwide processes our reimbursements with direct deposit within a few days of each submission and requests the updated prescription directly through the vet’s office as needed. Customer service has been very helpful when I’ve called, and we are grateful this benefit is offered to employees."
Kate Brown
Executive Assistant to the Superintendent

"I currently have the voluntary supplemental cancer insurance plan and have had a supplemental policy such as this for at least 10 years. Having additional coverage for what could be such a devastating illness is worth the additional cost for peace of mind. Seeing a loved one diagnosed with cancer and then going through chemotherapy and radiation treatments and the medical bills that accumulated with his primary insurance made me realize just how important additional coverage was to ease the financial burden."
Veronica W. Pitts
Assistant Principal

"I am enrolled in a few of the voluntary policies through Pierce. They all have wellness benefits and the claims to receive those benefits are all online and pretty easy to submit. The turnaround time on these claims has been very quick and with the wellness benefits, the cost of the policies is really not bad at all. Besides the wellness benefits, I have only had to submit one other claim on the accident policy when my son broke his collarbone playing sports and again the claim was pretty easy to submit and the reimbursement helped with the portion that insurance did not cover."
Jennifer Scholten, MSPT
Physical Therapist

"Enrolling in the voluntary benefits from Pierce Insurance has been a true blessing for my family. Just this year, my husband had an accidental injury to his hand that resulted in major surgery and several follow-up physical therapy visits. Thankfully, the surgery went well, but the road to recovery impacted many aspects of our lives, especially financially. Despite having medical insurance, medical bills quickly added up and with the support of accident insurance, we took care of medical expenses with minimal wait time for reimbursement. Submitting the accident claim was an easy online process. In addition, customer service was extremely helpful on the phone and through email, assisting us with the MANY questions we had along the way. We all know that accidents can happen at any time! After several years of enrollment, I would recommend this benefit to everyone as the monthly cost is nowhere near the support given when you really need it."
Monique Bigby-Johnson
Human Resources

"Optional benefits that I have used over the years have been pre-tax withholdings, which meant that not only were there overall tax advantages but made immediate assistance available. The four I have benefited most from include:

• Maestro FSA (Flexible Savings Account) This allows an individual or family to set aside annual funds, deducted pre-tax each paycheck, for anticipated medical or child care expenses. The employee can use the full amount early in the year if needed, and carry over a portion of unused funds to the next year. This helps cover co-pays and other medical incidentals.
• Insurance (Critical Illness, $150 for screening) allows the employee to choose from a number of categories of medical issues. If the medical issue does occur, an outright payment is made to the employee, and the plan pays $150 annually for a preventive screening. Aetna EAP (Employee Assistance Plan) Many staff members have found value in the resources that the EAP provides, including free counseling, financial or legal services at no cost for an initial number of consultations or sessions.
• Empower Retirement Plan. (Tax-Sheltered Savings) It isn’t necessary to start “big” but it is best to start as early as possible. There is even a “catch up” provision for anyone who is trying to put more away later in their career. Savings are not taxed until they are withdrawn. Having the automatic withdrawals makes saving almost painless and I recommend it as a wonderful benefit to HCPS employees and their families.

Jan Campbell
Executive Assistant to the principal

"My family has been very pleased with the voluntary benefits by Pierce Insurance through HCPS and have had it for many years. The customer service has always been top notch, professional and helpful. The wellness benefit monetary reimbursements are processed quickly and with no hassle."
Tina Miller
Administrative Assistant II
Bell Creek Middle School