MetLife and Travelers Renew Agreement to Provide Integrated Absence Management Solution

  
    
  
  
    
      Effective absence management programs have multiple workplace benefits 
      including workers compensation, short-term and long-term disability, and 
      Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) administration managed through an 
      integrated service. Therefore, MetLife and Travelers are pleased to 
      announce the renewal of their agreement to offer Synchrony® 
      absence management services.
    
    
      Synchrony combines group disability insurance and FMLA 
      administration from MetLife with workers compensation insurance and 
      claim administration services from Travelers to deliver one, integrated 
      approach that can help companies better manage employee absences whether 
      due to occupational or non-occupational events and assist employees in 
      returning to work as soon as medically appropriate. First offered by the 
      two companies in 1998, Synchrony programs currently cover more 
      than 180,000 employees.
    
    
      “MetLife is pleased to reaffirm our 
      relationship with Travelers. The Synchrony offering provides 
      affected employees with individually customized action plans and case 
      management which, in turn, can help employers’ 
      achieve their employee satisfaction and retention objectives,” 
      says Michael Fradkin, vice president, MetLife Disability. “The 
      integrated claim and absence management services can also help employers 
      decrease their direct and indirect costs for employee absences.”
    
    
      According to Bill Malugen, president of Travelers National Accounts 
      business, “Synchrony is an example of 
      our continued investment in claim administration services designed to 
      help customers achieve the best possible outcomes by integrating service 
      delivery and focusing on shared objectives.”
    
    
      Key features of the Synchrony model include:
    
    
      
        Two customer leaders for each Synchrony customer — 
        a disability point person and a workers compensation point person – 
        to help implement and manage programs;
      
      
        Experienced claim and medical specialists collaborate on case 
        management and return-to-work plans;
      
      
        A single, Travelers nurse lead for all concurrent occupational and 
        non-occupational claims;
      
      
        “Real-time” data 
        availability, Web- based tools for file review and electronic access 
        to reports;
      
      
        Claim reporting over the phone or internet 24 hours a day/7 days a 
        week;
      
      
        Integrated workers compensation and disability claim outcome reporting 
        delivered to customers.
      
    
    
      For more information about Synchrony services visit www.insynchrony.com.
    
    
      MetLife is the number one group disability insurer based on new sales 
      premiums and equivalents, as of year-end 2005. MetLife’s 
      group disability income insurance programs provide comprehensive 
      coverage and flexible solutions that are valuable to both employees and 
      employers.
    
    
      MetLife is a subsidiary of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET), a leading provider 
      of insurance and financial services with operations throughout the U.S. 
      and the Latin America, Europe and Asia Pacific regions. Through its 
      domestic and international subsidiaries and affiliates, MetLife, Inc. 
      reaches more than 70 million customers around the world and MetLife is 
      the largest life insurer in the U.S. (based on life insurance in-force). 
      The MetLife companies offer life insurance, annuities, auto and home 
      insurance, retail banking and other financial services to individuals, 
      as well as group insurance, reinsurance and retirement and savings 
      products and services to corporations and other institutions. For more 
      information, please visit www.metlife.com.
    
    
      Travelers is a business of The St. Paul Travelers Companies, Inc. 
      (NYSE:STA), a leading property casualty insurer selling primarily 
      through independent agents and brokers. The company’s 
      diverse business lines offer its global customers a wide range of 
      coverage in both the personal and commercial settings, including 
      automobile, homeowners, construction, small business, oil and gas, ocean 
      marine, financial and professional services, global technology and 
      public sector services. St. Paul Travelers is ranked 85 in the Fortune 
      500, with 2005 revenues of $24.4 billion and total assets of $113.2 
      billion. The company has approximately 32,000 employees.
    
    
      Synchrony® is integrated absence 
      management, which includes group disability insurance or services from 
      MetLife, workers compensation or services from The Travelers Indemnity 
      Company and/or its property casualty affiliates, and may include family 
      and medical leave administration from MetLife. Synchrony is a registered 
      trademark of Travelers Insurance Group Holdings Inc., and MetLife. 
      Metropolitan Life Insurance Company, 200 Park Avenue, New York, NY 
      10166. Travelers Insurance Group Holdings Inc., One Tower Square, 
      Hartford, CT, 06183.
    
  
Effective absence management programs have multiple workplace
benefits including workers compensation, short-term and long-term
disability, and Family and Medical Leave Act (FMLA) administration
managed through an integrated service. Therefore, MetLife and
Travelers are pleased to announce the renewal of their agreement to
offer Synchrony(R) absence management services.

   Synchrony combines group disability insurance and FMLA
administration from MetLife with workers compensation insurance and
claim administration services from Travelers to deliver one,
integrated approach that can help companies better manage employee
absences whether due to occupational or non-occupational events and
assist employees in returning to work as soon as medically
appropriate. First offered by the two companies in 1998, Synchrony
programs currently cover more than 180,000 employees.

   "MetLife is pleased to reaffirm our relationship with Travelers.
The Synchrony offering provides affected employees with individually
customized action plans and case management which, in turn, can help
employers' achieve their employee satisfaction and retention
objectives," says Michael Fradkin, vice president, MetLife Disability.
"The integrated claim and absence management services can also help
employers decrease their direct and indirect costs for employee
absences."

   According to Bill Malugen, president of Travelers National
Accounts business, "Synchrony is an example of our continued
investment in claim administration services designed to help customers
achieve the best possible outcomes by integrating service delivery and
focusing on shared objectives."

   Key features of the Synchrony model include:

   --  Two customer leaders for each Synchrony customer -- a
        disability point person and a workers compensation point
        person - to help implement and manage programs;

   --  Experienced claim and medical specialists collaborate on case
        management and return-to-work plans;

   --  A single, Travelers nurse lead for all concurrent occupational
        and non-occupational claims;

   --  "Real-time" data availability, Web- based tools for file
        review and electronic access to reports;

   --  Claim reporting over the phone or internet 24 hours a day/7
        days a week;

   --  Integrated workers compensation and disability claim outcome
        reporting delivered to customers.

   For more information about Synchrony services visit
www.insynchrony.com.

   MetLife is the number one group disability insurer based on new
sales premiums and equivalents, as of year-end 2005. MetLife's group
disability income insurance programs provide comprehensive coverage
and flexible solutions that are valuable to both employees and
employers.

   MetLife is a subsidiary of MetLife, Inc. (NYSE:MET), a leading
provider of insurance and financial services with operations
throughout the U.S. and the Latin America, Europe and Asia Pacific
regions. Through its domestic and international subsidiaries and
affiliates, MetLife, Inc. reaches more than 70 million customers
around the world and MetLife is the largest life insurer in the U.S.
(based on life insurance in-force). The MetLife companies offer life
insurance, annuities, auto and home insurance, retail banking and
other financial services to individuals, as well as group insurance,
reinsurance and retirement and savings products and services to
corporations and other institutions. For more information, please
visit www.metlife.com.

   Travelers is a business of The St. Paul Travelers Companies, Inc.
(NYSE:STA), a leading property casualty insurer selling primarily
through independent agents and brokers. The company's diverse business
lines offer its global customers a wide range of coverage in both the
personal and commercial settings, including automobile, homeowners,
construction, small business, oil and gas, ocean marine, financial and
professional services, global technology and public sector services.
St. Paul Travelers is ranked 85 in the Fortune 500, with 2005 revenues
of $24.4 billion and total assets of $113.2 billion. The company has
approximately 32,000 employees.

   Synchrony(R) is integrated absence management, which includes
group disability insurance or services from MetLife, workers
compensation or services from The Travelers Indemnity Company and/or
its property casualty affiliates, and may include family and medical
leave administration from MetLife. Synchrony is a registered trademark
of Travelers Insurance Group Holdings Inc., and MetLife. Metropolitan
Life Insurance Company, 200 Park Avenue, New York, NY 10166. Travelers
Insurance Group Holdings Inc., One Tower Square, Hartford, CT, 06183.