Integrate Voluntary Benefits with Core Enrollment
Integrating voluntary benefit enrollment with core enrollment can help employees make more informed choices across the full spectrum of benefits. Employers should educate and enroll the core and voluntary benefits together as part of a complete benefit package. Doing so enables employees to see the direct correlation between the medical plans’ out-of-pocket costs and how the voluntary benefits can provide the protection needed.
Integrating decision-support tools into the enrollment process will help employees navigate benefit enrollment — making it easier to compare plans, see where coverage gaps exist and opt for supplemental coverage to fill those gaps. For example, when comparing health plan options, employees could identify varying out-of-pocket exposures to medical benefits. Knowing these expenses may influence the health plans they choose and what supplemental health plans — such as critical illness, hospital indemnity and accident — they need to add to fill the gaps.
Explore Bundling and Third-Party Partnerships
Multi-line insurance carriers can help employers maximize their human resources budgets by offering bundled pricing options for voluntary benefits with group and medical lines such as life, disability, medical and dental. In addition to employer savings, bundling can also help organizations offer more of the voluntary benefits employees want, along with claims synergies, ease of administration and consolidated billing.
Many third-party organizations, such as benefit administration platforms, are forming exclusive or premier partnerships with carriers to help streamline and offset the costs of implementing voluntary benefit plans. Employers should ask their third-party providers if they have preferred carrier partners and how that could help reduce administrative fees.
Making Better Benefit Decisions
There is clear evidence that voluntary benefits are growing in value and popularity. For example, a recent Aon survey found that U.S. employees value accident coverage, critical illness and hospital indemnity coverage as much as if the employer funded their Health Savings Account or Health Reimbursement Arrangement.
Over the last decade, vendors, insurers, employers and employees have become more sophisticated in their approach to benefits. In turn, employers need to review and update voluntary benefit plans to address evolving employee needs, high medical costs and enhance employee wellbeing. Employers that adopt these strategies can succeed in providing valuable, cost-effective benefits long term.