Employers and employees are increasingly aware of the significant gap in retirement funding, especially given the aging population. As a result, there is considerable interest in offering innovative solutions that provide support post-employment (retirement). Solutions such as permanent life plans with cash value accumulation and long-term care features provide portable benefits that employees can take with them into retirement. Long-Term Care was identified as the fastest growing voluntary benefit from 2020 to 2024, with the top seven fastest growing voluntary benefits being:

1. Long-Term care
2. Emergency savings
3. Caregiving
4. Financial coaching
5. Critical illness
6. Cancer support and savings
7. Identity theft protection

Mental health

Employers are increasingly focused on mental health solutions for their employees, recognizing the direct impact on corporate earnings and profitability. Providing access to mental health resources significantly benefits employers through enhanced productivity, reduced absenteeism, improved morale, generating cost savings from lower medical claims, and their ability to attract and retain talent.

A recent Behavioral Health Business article highlighted that 77% of employers reported prioritizing improved access to mental health resources in 2024. This includes online resources and other sources.Additionally, many carriers are also supporting these employer interests by enhancing benefit plans to cover previously excluded conditions.

Flexible health care

Employers are continuing to introduce Lifestyle Spending Accounts to support diverse workforce interests. Employees are seeking greater customization and/or choices for their benefits. The traditional “one-size-fits-all” approach to providing a comprehensive benefits package is no longer effective. Factors such as employee demographics, geography, and genetic family history are key drivers on the demand for more personalized benefits.

From micro-enterprises to large organizations, companies are looking to offer Total Reward solutions that cater to their diverse populations. With five generations in the workforce, along with a mix of exempt and non-exempt employees, full-time and part-time staff, contractors, temporary workers, and volunteers, organizations need flexible solutions that meet everyone’s needs.

Fertility benefits

The average age of a first-time mother has risen from 25.03 years in 2007 to 27.5 years, marking a record high in the United States. This shift reflects a broader trend of Americans delaying parenthood, a pattern that has been ongoing since 2007.

According to the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans, 42% of U.S. employers offered fertility-related benefits in 2024 making a 30% increase from 2020. A significant portion of these employers were large organizations. The benefits ranged from In Vitro Fertilization (IVF) to fertility medication and testing for both males and females. Some of those benefits have also been added to supplemental health plans, such as Critical Illness coverage.

Human resources (HR) technologies

The digital age has transformed how we manage and share personal information, but it has also introduced new risks. In the first half of 2024, there were 653 reported data breaches impacting over 1 billion victims — a staggering 490% increase compared to the same period in 2023. As these incidents become more frequent and severe due to artificial intelligence, the need for heightened data privacy awareness and stronger personal cybersecurity protections is undeniable.

Employee personally identifiable information adds another layer of vulnerability in the workplace. HR and benefits administration systems manage vast amounts of sensitive data, including employee census information shared with insurance carriers and payroll details processed by third-party vendors. 

Benefit plan integration

The continued expansion of group carriers in the voluntary benefits marketplace, has significantly reshaped the landscape. Group insurance carriers are accustomed to providing greater claims transparency and are uniquely positioned to leverage existing employer-paid plans. By bundling group coverage options – such as medical, disability, or absence management services with supplemental health plans, employers can receive discounts on core lines, while employees benefit from simplified (auto-notify or auto-pay) claims processes. Additionally, by integrating both core and voluntary lines of coverage, plans may accommodate specific nuances, such as leave of absence continuance verbiage.

While the employee benefits marketplace has greatly evolved since the pre-Y2k era, employers are becoming more astute and are seeking innovative solutions. They want to offer attractive voluntary benefits, but also expect greater utilization by their employees and transparency from their carrier and vendor partners. These changing interests have fostered the thought of captive solutions and their growing consideration.

Related: How to differentiate your offerings with nontraditional voluntary benefits

Data analytics has become the next frontier for voluntary benefits. Employers want to deeply understand the highly utilized benefits of their voluntary or supplemental health plans. They seek data-driven insights and want to understand incidence rates of the plans, so their advisory partner(s) can design solutions that maximize benefits paid while eliminating low-value or highly profitable features of carriers. By making these adjustments, voluntary plan utilization could range from as low as 10% utilization to 5 or 6 times the utilization.

The voluntary benefits marketplace has evolved beyond offering standalone single lines of coverage like Personal Accident or Critical Illness. Instead, employers are interested in complex solutions that provide meaningful benefits:

• Fill gaps in coverage from the core benefits
• Reduce the employer spend of the core benefits
• Offer financial protection to employees
• Provide comprehensive benefit packages
• Appeal to a diverse workforce
• Attract new employees to the organization
• Retain existing employees
• Simplify administration of voluntary benefits
• Provide benefits for a nontraditional workforce that typically can’t access benefits
• Employees want or need guidance from professional benefit counselors
• Reducing HR technology costs
• Creating and delivering broader communications
• Increasing participation in more cost-favorable health plans
• Increasing plan utilization and benefits paid
• Continuance of coverage through expanding LOA standards

Next steps

To effectively address these complex interests, it’s crucial to have detailed conversations with your benefit advisor. Start these discussions now to seize the opportunity to positively impact both your organization and your valued employees.