Unlocking the full potential of digital health benefits for employees

Innovations in employer-sponsored health benefits were few and far between for decades. Now, the digital health revolution in recent years has pushed the modern workforce into a golden age of these benefits.

Employees’ expectations of their employers have shifted over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic and health benefits are no exception to that. In fact, according to a 2021 Workplace Wellness Survey of U.S. employees conducted by ERBI and Greenwald Research, more than half of employees believe mental health wellness programs are more important now than they were prior to the pandemic. In the same study, approximately 7 out of 10 respondents believe their employer has a responsibility to make sure employees are mentally, physically, and financially well.

In response, many employers now offer their employees free access to an expanding library of digital health programs that address a broad range of health conditions, from losing weight and quitting smoking to reducing the risk of diabetes and improving mental health.

Digital health benefits have become so popular that employers may need to find the balance between offering a variety of benefits employees want and unintentionally causing “benefits fatigue,” when employees become overwhelmed with dozens of digital health programs to choose from. Concerns about benefits fatigue have prompted many employers to examine how they can best leverage all of the options in a way that creates tangible value – rather than confusion – for their employees.

How do we get there? Every health plan needs to have a vast menu of digital health options to meet the diverse needs of its membership base. Yet, health plans need to partner with employers to provide employees with a guided experience that steers them to the digital programs that best meet individual needs. Employers should regularly evaluate how their digital benefits are being offered, the variety of programs available, utilization rates and clinical outcomes.

Lessons learned

In my career, I’ve been part of the digital health trend to deliver expanding benefits to health plan packages. This year, membership in our Wellvolution program – the digital health platform for Blue Shield of California members – reached 100,000, a 40,000 increase from the year before. During this growth, we’ve learned a lot about how to reduce benefits fatigue while improving member adoption and use.

When we started offering digital health options years ago, we delivered a one-size-fits-all approach to members. Only savvy health care employees explored these programs. At first glance, it seemed like members didn’t have an appetite for digital health.

Of course, that wasn’t the case. But we were only able to unlock the power of digital health once we transitioned our platform to a tailored experience – an automated questionnaire that provides members with a subset of digital health options relevant to their individual health needs. From there, our adoption and utilization rates increased, and led to improved outcomes for members, for example, 65% of members enrolled in one of our digital health programs are hitting their weight loss goals.

Clarity, ease, and guidance

Here are three ways employer health plans can improve digital-health adoption and utilization.

1. Clarity: Employees want to understand their benefits at a glance. Use graphics to convey information simply and clearly, such as an online infographic or chart. Additionally, website banners, consistent emails, and “push” notifications on the health plan’s app help remind and prompt employees to take advantage of digital offerings.
2. Ease of use: Employees should be able to easily navigate to their digital health benefits, ideally at a single location.
3. Guidance: Employees need guidance on identifying digital health solutions that are right for them. Several options include an automated questionnaire with tailored responses providing relevant digital choices; high-tech and high-touch approach using care navigators (A.I. or real people); and call centers (traditional but effective).

Related: Digital-first health care benefits

Digital health is an evolving, rapidly expanding space. At the core, employees want clarity and ease of access to the available providers and digital health benefits. Following these guidelines, employers can stay attuned to their employees and ensure they’re maximizing their digital health benefits without overwhelming them.

Tim Lieb, senior vice president of commercial markets at Blue Shield of California