Insurance

A new perks program from United Concordia Dental supports all aspects of a person’s total health, including oral, physical, mental, social and financial. Packaged as United Concordia Perks, it launched in January with health, wellness and lifestyle discounts from like-minded partners: Firstgrin, LifeMart, Philips Sonicare, Smile Brilliant and TruHearing.

According to the 2025 WebMD Health Services Workplace and Employee Survey, only one in four employees strongly agree that their organization cares about their well-being — a key indicator of an engaged and strong workforce. It also found that those who felt a genuine sense of organizational care reported 70% higher overall wellness.

“Helping your employees improve their well-being can have a positive impact on their perception of company care,” said Donna Hunter, vice president, Strategic Business Development, United Concordia Dental.  “We developed United Concordia Perks to help our customers and the communities we serve lead healthier lives. The program aims to make taking better care of one’s total health a little easier.”

A variety of new wellness-related perks and discounts for dental, hearing and everyday activities are available through the program. Initial partners include:

• Firstgrin, a trusted source for oral health guidance and resources for the whole family, features savings on baby and toddler dental care kits — plus a free year of mobile app access.
• LifeMart offers thousands of discounts across 25 broad categories, including food and grocery, health and wellness, fitness, mental health and more.
• Philips Sonicare, building on an established partnership with United Concordia, continues to deliver savings on select electric Sonicare toothbrushes and air flossers for adults and kids.
• Smile Brilliant features savings of up to 60% on a variety of dental products that support at-home, preventive care.
• TruHearing offers free annual comprehensive exams for hearing, as well as discounts on Signia, Widex and TruHearing brand hearing aids.

“We’ll continually look to expand our discount offerings by taking into consideration what members want and need to be healthier, using data-driven insights and what’s going on in the market to help guide us,” said Hunter. “As always, we recommend consulting with a clinician before starting anything new that can affect your health.”

Transportation

Mack Trucks recently unveiled the all-new reimagined, redesigned Mack^® Granite^® at the Las Vegas Motor Speedway, ahead of ConExpo-Con/Agg 2026, March 3-7 at the Las Vegas Convention Center. The all-new Granite significantly advances Mack’s vocational truck lineup, delivering an all-new cab, cutting-edge safety technologies, enhanced driver comfort and industry-first features designed to set a new standard in the vocational segment.

The available Mack Protect™ safety suite includes front camera, front radar and 270-degree radar coverage with both passenger-side and driver-side radar systems. Having both driver-side (left-hand) and passenger-side (right-hand) radars is a first. The Granite is also the first vocational truck to feature an Electronic Park Brake (ePark Brake) with rollaway protection, in conjunction with auto release when shifting into gear. Additional safety features include standard front and available side-curtain airbags, standard LED headlamps and fog lamps with available cornering lights. Standard on every all-new Granite is E911 auto-call, which automatically contacts emergency services when in cellular service range, if an airbag deploys or the system detects a rollover or collision – another first for the vocational segment.

The all-new Mack Granite will be available in day cab and 44-inch sleeper configurations in both axle-forward and axle-back positions, with multiple front and rear axle ratings to handle specific customer requirements. The truck is offered with graphite and bright trim packages, with features including LED headlights, three-piece bumper options and available sun visor. An optional hatch provides fluid access for snowplow applications.

The new Granite will be available for order in the latter half of 2026. Production of the all-new Mack Granite will begin in January 2027, at Mack’s Lehigh Valley Operations facility in Macungie, Pennsylvania, where all Class 8 Mack vehicles for North America and export are assembled.

“The all-new Mack Granite embodies everything Mack stands for: legendary durability, uncompromising performance and a commitment to our customers who depend on these trucks to get the toughest jobs done,” said Stephen Roy, president, Mack Trucks. “We’ve completely reimagined the Granite from the ground up, bringing the same level of innovation we delivered with our Pioneer and Anthem models to the vocational market.”