Lack of clarity and awareness leaves HR decision makers and employees in the dark

Supplemental health benefits have been growing in popularity in recent years, particularly as the cost of living and out-of-pocket medical costs are increasing.¹ But the industry continues to pay attention to utilization ratios, which can sometimes be surprisingly low. If critical illness, accident, and hospital indemnity insurance are important parts of a comprehensive benefits package, why is there a disconnect between what they provide and when employees use them? Securian Financial conducted focus groups with HR decision makers of Fortune 500 companies to better understand the divide.² Two key issues surfaced:

1. HR decision makers admit confusion about benefit packages and thus might not be able to give employees the information they need to truly understand their benefits.
2. HR decision makers don’t hear frequent chatter around voluntary benefits. This can lead to a perception that employees lack interest.

So, what can be done?

For starters, help HR influencers get educated. Check out the articles for fast, fun reads on the value of popular supplemental health offerings. You can even learn why pickleball enthusiasts might want to think about accident insurance. Here are a few more ideas:

1. Provide specific insight on what employees want when it comes to voluntary benefits and more importantly, the demonstrated impact of the offerings both internally and for talent acquisition.
2. Help HR decision makers understand how to keep newly implemented benefits exciting to increase usage among employees.
3. Come to the table with already designed employee-facing communications about available benefits. An established playbook that can be customized quickly is a huge win.

Let’s connect and discuss how we can help shed light on the value of voluntary benefits, including supplemental health insurance.