No matter how the health care reform debate is resolved in Washington, costs continue to escalate and any employees are clamoring for voluntary benefit supplement plans to help pay for out-of-pocket expenses.
According to Colonial Life’s white paper, “Big Picture Benefits: Looking past health care reform to a stronger benefits program,” the average deductible for employer-sponsored health plans surged 13 percent in 2016, but workers’ wages on average rose only 2 percent. Nearly half (47 percent) of Americans say they couldn’t cover a $400 emergency expense unless they sold something or borrowed the money, and close to one-third went without some medical care in the past year because they couldn’t afford it.
“A comprehensive, competitive employee benefits plan includes far more than major medical insurance,” the authors write. “Employers who want to attract and retain the best talent need to focus on the bigger picture of their benefits plans. In fact, there are many other options to consider that will help manage the bottom line and offer a benefits program that gives their business a competitive edge.”
However, there is a wide discrepancy in what employees list as “must-have” benefits compared with what employers offer, especially for accident, critical illness and hospital confinement insurance, the authors write.
They cite a 2016 MetLife study which says while 44 percent of employees want an accident plan, only 25 percent of employers offer the product. Twenty-eight percent of employees want a critical illness plan, but only 18 percent of employers offer such a plan, and 24 percent of employees want a hospital confinement plan, while only 14 percent of employers offer the product.
Employers could also stand to improve their benefits communications, the authors say. While nearly all employers with fewer than 500 employees (94 percent) agree one-to-one enrollments are effective, only 43 percent offer them. Yet surveys of employees who have participated in individual benefits counseling show 95 percent say it was valuable and 98 percent say they understand their benefits better.
One-to-one enrollments are particularly helpful to employees when considering less-understood voluntary benefits such as accident and critical illness insurance, and many carriers provide help with communications at no additional cost, the authors write. Some will even customize printed materials and websites for each customer.
“Employers who broaden their vision beyond major medical coverage to include voluntary benefits and benefits communication will be ideally positioned to both manage the bottom line and give their business a competitive edge,” the authors write. “Increasingly, employers are finding voluntary benefits offer solutions to control costs, help employees protect their financial well-being, and provide expanded options for a diverse workforce.”
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Katie Kuehner-Hebert
Katie Kuehner-Hebert is a freelance writer based in Running Springs, Calif. She has more than three decades of journalism experience, with particular expertise in employee benefits and other human resource topics.
