TITLE 33 INSURANCE

Section 27. Group Life Insurance, 33-27-1 through 33-27-9.

ARTICLE 4 UNDERWRITING AND RATE RISKING

33-27-2. Extension of policy coverage to dependents of employees or members.

1. Any policy issued pursuant to paragraphs (1), (4), and (5) of Code Section 33-27-1 may be extended to insure the employees or members against loss due to the death of their spouses and dependent or minor children or any class or classes thereof, subject to the following requirements:
   1. The premium for the insurance shall be paid by the policyholder either from the employer's or union's funds or funds contributed by the insured employees or members, or from both. If no part of the premium is to be derived from funds contributed by the employees or members, all eligible employees or members, excluding any as to whose family members' evidence of insurability is not satisfactory to the insurer, must be insured with respect to their spouses and children;
   2. The insurance must be based on some plan precluding individual selection by the employees or members or by the policyholder, employer, or union;
   3. Upon termination of the insurance with respect to the members of the family of any employee or member by reason of the employee's or member's termination of employment, termination of membership in the class or classes eligible for coverage under the policy, or death, the spouse shall be entitled to have issued by the insurer without evidence of insurability an individual policy of life insurance without disability or other supplementary benefits, providing application for the individual policy shall be made and the first premium paid to the insurer within 31 days after such termination, subject to the requirements of paragraph (8) of subsection (a) of Code Section 33-27-3. If the group policy terminates or is amended so as to terminate the insurance of any class of employees or members and the employee or member is entitled to have issued an individual policy under paragraph (9) of subsection (a) of Code Section 33-27-3, the spouse shall also be entitled to have issued by the insurer an individual policy, subject to the conditions and limitations provided in this Code section. If the spouse dies within the period during which the spouse would have been entitled to have an individual policy issued in accordance with this provision, the amount of life insurance which the spouse would have been entitled to have issued under such individual policy shall be payable as a claim under the group policy, whether or not application for the individual policy or the payment of the first premium therefor has been made.
2. Notwithstanding paragraph (7) of subsection (a) of Code Section 33-27-3, only one certificate need be issued for delivery to an insured person if a statement concerning any dependent's coverage is included in the certificate.

(Code 1933, § 56-2703, enacted by Ga. L. 1960, p. 289, § 1; Ga. L. 1969, p. 22, § 1; Ga. L. 1969, p. 430, § 1; Ga. L. 1969, p. 612, § 1; Ga. L. 1982, p. 3, § 33; Ga. L. 1982, p. 822, §§ 1, 2; Ga. L. 1985, p. 998, § 1; Ga. L. 2013, p. 141, § 33/HB 79; Ga. L. 2013, p. 762, § 2/HB 103.)

The 2013 amendments. The first 2013 amendment, effective April 24, 2013, part of an Act to revise, modernize, and correct the Code, revised punctuation in paragraph (a)(1). The second 2013 amendment, effective July 1, 2013, in paragraph (a)(1), deleted the former second sentence which read: "If any part of the premium is to be derived from funds contributed by the insured employees or members, the insurance with respect to spouses and children may be placed in force only if at least 75 percent of the then eligible employees or members, excluding any as to whose family members evidence of insurability is not satisfactory to the insurer, elect to make the required contribution.", and substituted "members' evidence" for "members evidence" in the last sentence.