Proposed legislation would make family leave plans a type of insurance

WASHINGTON – Bipartisan model legislation proposed at the National Council of Insurance Legislators (NCOIL) Summer Meeting would help workers across the country care for themselves or a family member without suffering economic distress. NCOIL is an organization composed of state lawmakers that develops model insurance laws for consideration by state legislatures.

The “Paid Family Leave Insurance Model Act,” sponsored by Minnesota State Senator Paul Utke (R) and Arkansas State Representative Deborah Ferguson, DDS (D), would make family leave plans a type of insurance that employers can voluntarily purchase for their employees. The policies would pay benefits:

• After the birth of a child or adoption of a child by an employee;
• When a child is placed with an employee for foster care;
• To help an employee care for a family member who has a serious health condition; or
• When an employee's family member in the military is on active duty or has been called to active duty status.

The model is similar to bipartisan legislation signed into law by Virginia Governor Glenn Youngkin earlier this year.

“The proposal before NCOIL would address a critical challenge facing today’s workers,” said American Council of Life Insurers (ACLI) President and CEO Susan Neely. “Too many face an impossible choice between earning a paycheck and taking time to care for a loved one. Like the landmark law passed in Virginia, the NCOIL proposal will enable employers to offer paid family leave solutions that protect their workers from economic loss.”

Life insurance companies already provide paid medical leave benefits through short-term disability policies to more than 47% of full-time U.S. workers. The NCOIL proposal would establish new laws in the states that permit companies to offer insurance plans covering family leave.

“We commend Senator Utke and Representative Ferguson for advancing this important proposal. We look forward to its adoption by NCOIL and working for its enactment in state legislatures across the country,” Neely said.