Unum (NYSE: UNM) has enhanced the wellness benefit of its critical illness products by adding the H1N1 vaccine to the list of qualifying procedures.

“Employee absence, even in the best of times, can strain the ability of companies to meet their business obligations. This year, the H1N1 flu virus is adding extra stress in the workplace,” said Scott Brown, product director at Unum. “By offering this benefit to our existing and new critical illness customers, we hope to encourage a bit of prevention that will help businesses maintain their productivity.”

This limited-time-offer from Unum will be available for the 2009-2010 flu season and provides another option on the menu of qualifying procedures. It enriches the critical illness product that was the No. 1 seller in the voluntary benefits market for the past four years, as reported by Eastbridge Consulting Group, and to Unum’s new group critical illness offering.

The group critical illness wellness benefit is $75 per year, and the individual health screening benefit rider pays $50. Covered individuals can submit a simple claim to Unum to get their benefit, even if they don’t incur a personal cost for the vaccine. Unum is waiving the 30-day waiting period for new individual policyholders to encourage employees to take advantage of this important preventive service.

Other screenings eligible for the wellness benefit include colonoscopy, mammography, Pap smear, PSA test for prostate cancer, serum cholesterol test, among others.

“The wellness benefit that accompanies critical illness coverage is a great way to encourage employees to get the preventive screenings that are so valuable in early detection,” Brown says. “The $50 or $75 benefit received in return helps pay for a portion of the critical illness insurance itself. So it rewards policyholders for their proactive steps toward prevention and early detection.”

Critical illness insurance can help fill gaps in medical coverage and help pay for expenses that may fall outside the scope of health coverage. Unum has paid nearly $50 million in benefits since 2002 for individuals ranging in age from newborn to 70 years. Those payments – available in sums up to $50,000 – helped thousands of workers and their families cover the costs associated with serious illness, anything from the costs of treatment to the expenses of travel or household bills.

About Unum

Unum (www.unum.com) is one of the leading providers of employee benefits products and services, and the largest provider of group and individual disability insurance in the United States. Through its subsidiaries, Unum paid $6 billion in total benefits to customers in 2008.