(1) “Employees” includes the officers, managers and employees of the employer, the individual proprietor or partner if the employer is an individual proprietor or partnership, the officers, managers and employees of subsidiary or affiliated corporations, and the individual proprietors, partners and employees of individuals and firms, if the business of the employer and the individual or firm is under common control through stock ownership, contract, or otherwise. “Employees” may include retired employees. A policy issued to insure employees of a public body may provide that “employees” include elected or appointed officials. The policy may provide that “employees” include the trustees or their employees, or both, if their duties are principally connected with the trusteeship of the policy; and

(2) “Group accident and health insurance” means that form of accident and health insurance covering groups of persons as defined in the policy, with or without one (1) or more members of their families or one (1) or more of their dependents, or covering one (1) or more members of the families or one (1) or more dependents, under a policy issued to an employer or trustees of a fund established by an employer, or to an association, a labor union or the trustees of a fund established by a labor union or an association, or the trustees of a fund established by two (2) or more employers in the same or related industry, or by one (1) or more labor unions or by one (1) or more employers and one (1) or more labor unions, or to a creditor or vendor in connection with a credit transaction (except for insurance regulated by or provided for in § 56-7-901), who shall be deemed the policyholder, insuring employees of the employer for the benefit of persons other than the employer, or insuring members or employees of the association or labor union for the benefit of persons other than officers of the association or labor union, or insuring employees of the employers or members of the unions, for the benefit of persons other than the employers or the unions, or insuring the debtors of the creditor or vendor to reduce the unpaid indebtedness of the debtor or vendee to the extent of payment of the benefits under the policy (except for insurance regulated by or provided for in § 56-7-901).