SGLI
SGLI Coverage Increase to $500,000
This email is to notify you that effective today, March 1, 2023, all service members eligible for Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance (SGLI) coverage will have their coverage increased to $500,000, even if the coverage was previously declined or reduced. This increase is due to the enactment of Public Law 117-209, “Supporting Families of the Fallen Act”.
Please review the information below to determine the next step(s) that are right for you. Most importantly, note that you must act by March 31, 2023, to reduce or decline coverage and avoid being charged for the additional coverage starting in April 2023.
1. I had SGLI coverage and I want the higher coverage amount of $500,000.
• You don’t need to do anything. Your coverage will automatically increase on March 1, 2023, and you will
see a deduction for $30, plus $1 for Traumatic Injury Protection (TSGLI) coverage in April.
• You may want to consider reviewing your SGLI beneficiaries and the shares you gave to each beneficiary.
To do so, log on to the SGLI Online Enrollment System (SOES)
at: https://milconnect.dmdc.osd.mil/milconnect/.
2. I had SGLI coverage but I do not want the higher coverage amount of $500,000.
• You will need to certify the lesser amount of coverage you desire using the SGLI Online Enrollment System
(SOES) at: https://milconnect.dmdc.osd.mil/milconnect/. If you act by March 31, 2023, you will not be
charged for the higher amount of coverage.
• You will be covered for $500,000 for the entire month of March 2023 even if you reduce coverage in
March, but you will not have to pay an additional premium.
• Please note that you may be required to meet medical requirements should you decide to increase
your coverage in the future.
3. I did not have SGLI coverage but I want to keep either $500,000 of coverage or a lesser amount.
• If you want to keep the $500,000 of coverage, you don’t need to do anything. However, we would
advise using the SGLI Online Enrollment System (SOES) at: https://milconnect.dmdc.osd.mil/milconnect/
to designate beneficiaries or update existing beneficiary shares should you pass away.
• If you want to keep a lesser amount of SGLI coverage,
o You will need to certify the lesser amount you desire using the SGLI Online Enrollment
System (SOES) at: https://milconnect.dmdc.osd.mil/milconnect/. If you act by
March 31, 2023, you will not be charged for the higher amount of coverage.
o You will be covered for $500,000 for the entire month of March 2023 even if you
reduce coverage in March, but you will not have to pay an additional premium.
o Please note that you may be required to meet medical requirements should you
decide to increase your coverage in the future.
• You will now also automatically have Family SGLI coverage for your dependent children at no
cost and Traumatic Injury Protection (TSGLI) coverage costing $1 month in addition
to your SGLI premium.
• You will now also be able to elect Family SGLI coverage for your spouse up to $100,000,
or your SGLI coverage, whichever is less. To do so, log on to the SGLI Online Enrollment
System (SOES) at: https://milconnect.dmdc.osd.mil/milconnect/.
4. I did not have SGLI previously and I still do not want SGLI coverage.
• You will need to decline SGLI coverage again using the SGLI Online Enrollment System
(SOES) at: https://milconnect.dmdc.osd.mil/milconnect/. If you act by March 31, 2023,
you will not be charged for the higher amount of coverage.
• You will be covered for $500,000 for the entire month of March 2023 even if you
decline coverage in March, but you will not have to pay an additional premium.
• Please note that you may be required to meet medical requirements should you decide
to increase your coverage in the future.
Should you have additional questions about this increase in coverage, please visit: https://www.benefits.va.gov/insurance/sgli-increase-faqs.asp.
Guest Post – Servicemember’s Group Life Insurance (SGLI) and an Important Note Regarding Individual Disability Insurance Eligibility
Understanding the value of maintaining life insurance to protect loved ones, the military makes group term life insurance available under the Servicemember’s Group Life Insurance (SGLI) program to the following service members:
- Active duty
- Ready Reservists or National Guard who are assigned to a unit and scheduled to perform at least 12 periods of inactive training per year
- Commissioned Members of the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration and the Public Health Service
- Cadets or Midshipman of the U.S. military academies
- Members of the Reserve Officer Training Corps engaged in authorized training and practice cruises
If you are on this list, at the end of this article provides a link on how to enroll. This coverage is not free as you must pay a monthly premium. This article will provide you the information you need to make an informed decision about life insurance.
SGLI is group term life insurance which means it will pay your beneficiary, a person or entity you choose, who will suffer a financial loss in the event of your death. If you can’t think of anyone, for example if you are single with no dependents, you can stop reading because you probably don’t need life insurance. However, if you are married with children, mortgage, etc., this protection is extremely important. Financial planning calculators indicate that an insured individual should maintain 7-10 times their annual income in life insurance until their youngest child is 25 years old.
SGLI provides up to $400,000 of coverage regardless of health and age for $24 per month. A similar private policy from the open market issued on a 30-year-old non-smoker will cost between $22-$32 per month, so the SGLI policy is competitively priced. This is because most active duty military are young, healthy and retire fairly young so the liability for the insurance company, Prudential, is mitigated.
Upon separation from service, SGLI can be converted to Veterans Group Life Insurance (VGLI) within one year and 120 days from separation. If done within 240 days of separation, no health qualification is required. Thereafter you must meet good health standards. Unlike SGLI, VGLI is not competitively priced and rates are determined by age and increase in five-year increments. A $400,000 VGLI policy is $40 per month between ages 30-34, $68 per month at age 40, $144 per month at age 50 and increases every five years to $1840 per month at age 75. Similar individual policies are approximately 60% of the cost of VGLI but you must qualify medically.
Taking into consideration the incomes of most military physicians and dentists, not only is SGLI inadequate in terms of need but it can lead to providing a false sense of security and result in the postponement of establishing an adequate personal term insurance program early in one’s military career before the development of health issues, nicotine use, avocations, or deployment. The only exclusions on individual life insurance policies are suicide during the first two years so war is covered but you cannot initiate coverage if you are stationed outside the country or have received orders to do so. Once again, the sooner you apply for coverage the wiser.
It is prudent to examine your individual life insurance options sooner rather than later. Please contact our office with any questions and don’t forget to ask about the disability insurance discount for new policies.
Important Note Regarding Eligibility for Individual Disability Insurance
Receiving orders for deployment outside the USA will prevent you from being able to apply for a non-cancelable and guaranteed renewable to age 65 policy until you return to the USA. This would mean paying a higher rate for the duration of your career. Since OCONUS PCS orders are given when you are at the end of training, it is prudent to explore establishing coverage prior to that time period. Avoid this potential pitfall and others by working with us and our extensive experience with military physicians and dentists today.
Andy G. Borgia CLU
D.K. Unger
888-934-4637
858-523-7518
SGLI Online Enrollment System (SOES) – Life Insurance https://www.benefits.va.gov/INSURANCE/SOES.asp
SOES is the Servicemembers’ Group Life Insurance (SGLI) On-Line Enrollment System. It replaces the paper-based SGLI/Family SGLI (FSGLI) enrollment, maintains elections and beneficiary information, and provides 24/7 self-service access to SGLI information. SGLI provides insurance coverage to eligible members of the active and reserve components.
SGLI Beneficiaries Remain in Place as Navy Transitions to New Online System
“Your SGLI coverage is still in place,” said Ann Stewart, director, Pay and Personnel Department, Navy Personnel Command. “Sailors who log into SOES for the first time will have to input their beneficiary information manually. That is why there is no information the first time you use the system. But rest assured, that that form you previously filled out to designate your SGLI beneficiaries remains valid, until you register with the SOES.”
The Navy announced the launch of online SGLI enrollment in NAVADMIN 085/17 in April 2017 as part of a Department of Defense and Veterans Administration joint effort, to allow active duty and eligible reserve and National Guard members to review their group and family coverage online. SOES is the online replacement for the paper form SGLI Election and Certificate, SGLV 8286. The new system eliminates unclear designations and missing or incomplete forms — problems identified with the paper-based system — and ensures all insurance holders receive the latest information about changes affecting their coverage.
The goal is for all Navy members to provide beneficiary name(s), share(s) of proceeds and certify their record with a digital signature by April 2018.
While the SOES enables active duty and eligible reserve members to manage their group and family coverage online, there are some Sailors who shouldn’t use the system. Sailors who already have a testamentary trust or a testamentary custodial account created by a Regional Legal Service Office (RLSO) attorney should not use SOES to update their SGLI designations. Sailors with a testamentary trust or a testamentary custodial account who have registered with SOES should see their RLSO to reinstate their trust and/or account. Sailors interested in creating a testamentary trust or a testamentary custodial account should also see their RLSO and not use the SOES.
Here’s how to input beneficiary information in SOES:
1. Visit www.dmdc.osd.mil/milconnect.
2, Sign into milConnect on this page with your command access card (CAC). The green button is located in the upper right corner.
3. After signing in, you will be sent back to the milConnect front page. The menu bar will now display multiple options, one of which is ‘BENEFITS.’
4. Click on the ‘BENEFITS’ drop-down menu and click on ‘LIFE INSURANCE (SOES-SGLI Online Enrollment System).’
5. On the following page, scroll down to the blue continue button and click it (you may have to do so twice).
6. The following page provides you with your current Defense Eligibility Enrollment System (DEERS) information that must be verified. When finished reviewing, click continue.
7. The following page is where you can make your beneficiary selections. If this is your first time logging in, you will not see any beneficiary information listed. This does not mean you are not covered. You remain covered if you have previously filled out and signed an SGLI paper form. Please input your beneficiary selections into SOES.
8. After making your selections, click on the ‘YOUR COVERAGE’ tab and select the blue ‘CONFIRM AND CERTIFY’ button in the bottom right.
9. The next screen will ask you to make some legal declarations. Review and check the appropriate boxes and click ‘CONTINUE.’
10. You will be asked if you want to print a preview of the document. This is an uncertified copy for review. A certified copy is available at the end of the process. Click to continue.
11. Next, you will be asked for an electronic signature. Provide your full name and email address and click to continue.
12. The system will provide you an effective date for your SGLI election.
13. Print or email your certified document by navigating to the “Print/Save Certificate” tab.
For more information, take the online training course available at: www.benefits.va.gov/INSURANCE/training/SOES/SOES.htm
More information about SGLI can be found at the following links: www.npc.navy.mil/support/casualty/fsgli/Pages/default.aspx.
http://www.public.navy.mil/bupers-npc/reference/messages/Documents/NAVADMINS/NAV2017/NAV17085.txt
For more information, visit www.navy.mil, www.facebook.com/usnavy, or www.twitter.com/usnavy.
For more news from Chief of Naval Personnel, visit www.navy.mil/local/cnp/.
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