What Employers Can Do This Year To Support Employees’ Financial Wellness

4 ways to help employees leverage their healthcare benefits to build financial wellness in 2020

Healthier employees are more productive, present and engaged. They’re also less likely to be distracted by the stress of unpaid healthcare bills. Yet, the reality is that today’s skyrocketing healthcare costs are putting significant strain on employees’ job performance, their pocketbooks and their overall health and well-being. One in four has skipped healthcare services because they can’t afford the out-of-pocket expenses.

Americans are now spending between $500 and $3,400 annually on contributions to premiums, and out-of-pocket costs have also been rising, jumping from a few hundred dollars on average less than a decade ago to an average deductible today of $1,573 among covered workers with individual plans.

That’s why it’s important for employers to remember that when they talk about their employees’ health and wellness, they are also talking about their financial wellness. Each time an employer sees an opportunity to help their employees improve the way they manage their money, they should seize it. Better yet, they should actively create those opportunities. And research shows that employees are open to employers providing access to unbiased financial counselors: 25 percent say it’s the employer benefit they would like to see added.

Here are four ways to help employees leverage their healthcare benefits to build financial wellness in 2020 and beyond:

Employees’ poor literacy about the healthcare benefits options available to them—and the rush they feel to make a decision during open enrollment—have contributed to confusion about which insurance plans will cost the most and which are best in the long term. 

That’s why a trend is emerging among mid-sized and large companies of introducing not only the benefits themselves but of building a framework for continuing education around those benefits. Though we’re in the earlier stages of companies doing this, it’s been exciting to see employers providing better education about healthcare benefits as well also adopting tools to give employees better visibility and support. 

As it stands, too few workers have sufficient tools to evaluate new healthcare benefits scenarios throughout the plan year. Online comparison tools and dashboard views can be extremely helpful for this, and can also offer employees an end-of-year summary of savings or notify them of the potential for additional savings. If employees are given the data they need in an easy-to-use, accessible way, they’re more inclined to make better decisions as they move forward with their plans. 

As the healthcare system continually changes in the U.S., employers have to constantly revaluate whether or not they’re bringing the most value to their employees and making use of the most contemporary and current resources. One of the best ways to lift this burden off an employer’s shoulder is to bring in experts in different fields to educate their employees, and not just during open enrollment. For example, WEX offers its partners ongoing education throughout the year, sharing insights and examples of how employees are—in real life—using, working and managing healthcare expenses. 

But whichever partner an employer chooses, the goal should be to support their employees in building a self-sustaining community where they’re sharing stories and information about making the most of the benefits that they have, how to pay for them, how to manage ongoing costs, and how to use portals and dashboards to self-manage and self-serve. 

Many employers aren’t doing a great job explaining the financial pros and cons of the benefits choices they offer. This is evidenced by the fact that even though a health savings account (HSA) is an ideal way for employees to build longterm savings for healthcare expenses in retirement, only half of those WEX surveyed knew that an HSA could be leveraged as a retirement savings tool.

The good news is that consumers want their employers to provide them with more education about HSAs. Even something as simple as putting all of an employee’s HSA-related links in one place can go a long way toward keeping employees engaged. For example, “To check account balance, go here; to change your benefit elections, go here; to get help estimating costs for an upcoming procedure, go here.”

Lovemyhsa.com is one of the resources that employers may want to provide, as the site is filled with a wealth of simplified information around what an HSA is, what it can do and how employees can incorporate it into their plan as they think about healthcare costs today as well as tomorrow. 

There are many different types of employees across the spender-saver spectrum, and based on an individual’s life stage and goals, their needs may be very different. By tailoring communications and tools to employees so they see themselves in the products and not in stereotypes, employers can address them at specific life moments with the personalized experiences and communications they need. 

Employers should start by asking questions like: How can I deliver individual employee guided tours? When will certain tips and resources be best received? How can I frame a discussion in an employee’s real-world needs, both their current cost of living and what it will cost to maintain their lifestyle at a future cost of living? 

By seeking these answers, employers are better able to connect their employees to the right training, tools and communities, and to meet them where they are—so they help get them where they need to be.