Helping employees understand their health plans

Offering company-sponsored benefit support is a great step toward fostering a healthy culture teeming with well-informed individuals. Empowering employees to master their benefits is a priority of many organizations, but how is it executed?

According to a recent survey, 76% of workers said understanding their benefits made them happy and 82% said understanding how to use their benefits would give them a greater sense of stability. From securing insurance ID cards to finding a network provider, let’s explore a few different ways to support your benefits plans.

Optimize Onboarding

Improving healthcare literacy is an important building block in effective benefit usage. Consider optimizing your onboarding process by including insurance terminology, offering pamphlets, online videos, and dedicated web pages to distribute complex benefit information. Provide your team with a solid starting point for managing their benefits by offering personalized and comprehensive details surrounding costs, coverage, and provider choices.

Offer Support Programs or Contacts

One of the first steps in helping employees understand their benefit plans is to clearly outline your company’s point of contact for questions and concerns. Second, consider offering supplementary benefit support programs that help your team streamline communication around detailed benefit questions.

While most companies provide insurance documentation, having access to an expert can greatly assist employees during claim disputes or when they're unsure about finding a provider. Expert support ensures that benefits are maximized and utilized effectively. Whether it is an outsourced advocate, a set support meeting, or course to complete, you can’t go wrong with extra resources.

Offer an Open Learning Environment or Resources

Reports indicate that 85% of employees experience confusion about their benefits. Finding clear ways to guide your team through the healthcare system and their insurance benefits has a positive impact on employees and your business overall.

Tackle the confusion by providing benefit materials that clearly state their coverage and benefit plan. Then, consider setting up a structured time for open conversations and questions with HR leadership or a benefits expert. Encouraging employees to review their elections at the beginning of the year or to verify listed beneficiaries is an excellent method for individuals to grasp the costs and coverage they’ve chosen.

Use Employee Surveys

Identifying the key benefit elements that matter most to your employees represents a crucial step toward offering outstanding benefit support. Conducting a brief survey to gauge priorities or solicit feedback can yield significant results.

Considering that 76% of workers report happiness when they understand their benefits, this approach could also positively influence your organizational culture. Prioritizing employee preferences can cultivate a culture of care and mutual respect that can lead to immeasurable outcomes in the future.

Additionally, your organization will have more information to use as it builds a successful benefit program that is competitive and fulfilling for your team. For even more tips on benefit advocacy and information, check out this post: 6 tips to help your employees get the most out of their benefits

You may also be interested in reading our blog, 4 ways to celebrate National Employee Benefits Day

What We Do

Optavise supports a happier, healthier workforce by helping employees with benefit satisfaction. Through solutions like Optavise Advocacy, Optavise Education, and Optavise Benefits Administration, we simplify the benefits process to drive employee engagement while saving employers time and money. Chat with us today to streamline the benefits support process.