Employers collaborate to boost health, well-being initiatives
Employee engagement with such programs currently leaves a lot to be desired, according to the National Business Group on Health.
Employers are going deeper into the need to get employee more involved with employer-provided health and well-being programs.
To that end, more than 20 major employers are collaborating with the National Business Group on Health in launching the “Leadership Forum on Employee Experience,” which the group describes as “a major initiative to bolster employee engagement and improve their experience with employer-provided health and well-being benefits and programs.”
Employee engagement with such programs currently leaves a lot to be desired, according to the National Business Group on Health, with the launch of the forum coming in response to some disturbing employee statistics. Workers have a hard time these days understanding the health care system and how best to use their health and well-being benefits.
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According to the 2018 Consumer Mindset Survey from Alight Solutions and the National Business Group on Health, just 53 percent of individuals can understand and manage how they get health care services; only half understand and manage how to pay for these services. In addition, and even more disturbing, according to the survey, a quarter of consumers ” give up and just hope for the best.”
“These are alarming findings and ones that employers should take note [of],” Ellen Kelsay, chief strategy officer at the National Business Group on Health, says, adding, “The Leadership Forum seeks to reverse these statistics and create an easier, more seamless health care experience for employees and their families.”
The forum initiative, according to the group, aims to “identify strategies for employers to personalize, simplify and communication information about their health benefits and well-being programs, and deliver it in ways that employees want and appreciate.”
Specifically, the forum will concentrate on personalizing employee communications; using data and analytics; incorporating mobile technology and digital platforms; integrating the delivery system and point solutions; employing health advocacy navigator and concierge services; and optimizing health plan design and incentives.
“Employee engagement is a major concern for large employers and understanding how to best use their benefits is complicated for many employees. That’s the primary reason we are developing this group.”
Kelsay adds, “This pressing priority, coupled with the emerging capability of big data and predictive analytics to forecast employee needs and the growing use of personalized, just-in-time technology solutions, is creating a ripe opportunity for employers and experts to come together around cutting-edge strategies and tactics that can enhance the employee experience with their health and well-being benefits.”