Cancer benefits: healthy habits lead to long-term success

Q2 is here and it’s time for a benefits checkup: Do the benefits you offer truly provide for all aspects of an employee’s wellbeing? Your answer is probably something like, “I know we offer the best benefits possible.” But that can be both true and still leave room for improvement. 

A holistic approach to your benefits offerings can help the members of your team create lifelong commitments to health and wellness, which benefits both the individual and the company. This approach could make an even greater impact on millennial and Gen Z demographics. Studies show that they understandably place a significantly lower priority on preventive health care. This is something we need to change, as the future of our workforce is an important one. As trusted advisors, you have the opportunity to offer your teams the benefits that can help the whole person stay healthy and stay happy.

While your employees may be thinking about many types of potential medical events, cancer is the one I believe has the greatest likelihood of occurrence and the most impactful financial impact. I’m sure you’ve heard the phrase “prevention is better than cure,” and there’s nothing more accurate. According to the Aflac 2023 Wellness Matters Survey, 51% of Americans diagnosed with cancer found out at a routine medical exam or regularly scheduled screening. That means that for many, the diagnosis was found early, potentially leading to better physical outcomes and less financial stress. The need to focus on wellness and prevention is further highlighted by the latest data from the American Cancer Society. 

The survey also shows that 85% of employees are likely to go to routine checkups if they receive a cash incentive to do so. As leaders, you know we must meet people where they are, and monetary incentives can work. Fostering healthier and happier team members is not only the right thing to do; it’s good for business, good for recruitment and retention, and it contributes to the overall success of your company. 

Cancer is still, by and large, a disease of age. The older you are, the more likely it will occur. That said, incidence rates among younger individuals are on the rise. We don’t expect that a healthy 25-year-old will get cancer, but they can. What if the benefits you offer can help encourage employees to emphasize preventive health care, even when they are young? The habits someone creates at age 25 can become lifelong values. Those values can lead to improved health — and could even be life-changing. And you don’t have to receive a cancer diagnosis to receive the benefits of a cancer insurance policy.

Our goal is to help create a healthier America. Offering benefits that encourage healthy habits now can make an impact on the future of our workforce. You’re already trying to recruit and retain these growing demographics, and this holistic approach to benefits is another important tactic to appeal to your changing workforce. You can make an impact with the right coverage in place.