5 Health Benefits And Wellness Trends That Prioritize Employee Needs

Addressing rising drug costs and improving medication access

As we round the corner on another calendar year, employers are in a tug of war between rising costs and the increasing demand for competitive health benefits that go beyond just the safety net of traditional insurance.
 

Employees want to feel and see the true value of their health benefits plan in action. They’re seeking solutions that provide real benefits to meet their individual needs and that are also easy to understand. Research has shown that employees also want more help understanding their health benefits options during open enrollment, paired with more guidance on how to effectively utilize their plan throughout the year.

As the chief health plan officer at Gravie, I keep a close eye on our health plan offerings, ranging from plan design to underwriting, networks, pharmacy benefits, and more. As we move into 2024, here are five trends we’re seeing and addressing to bring more support and value to our members that we believe are true for members, employers, and brokers across the industry:

1. Employee Fatigue from Point Solutions and Wellness Programs

The pandemic put pressure on employers to better care for employees’ holistic health, resulting in a deluge of new wellness programs and point solutions, often digital ones. Some have been true game-changers and provide meaningful benefits, but there are also a host of digital health companies that have struggled to deliver on their promise. And when it comes to wellness, while access to helpful programs is still important, research points to many proving ineffective at truly driving down health plan costs. Even amongst those solutions that do work well, employees can be fatigued by the plethora of options. We believe things work best when a tailored set of point solutions are seamlessly integrated into a comprehensive health plan that removes the barrier to entry for care – both digital (e.g., free digital physical therapy) and in-person (e.g., free mental health coverage) – and thus make it easier for members to prioritize their overall well-being.

2. Health Benefits Embracing Consumer-centric Ideas from Other Industries

Often viewed as a bureaucratic and complicated industry, the health plan space has seen more benefits innovators drive change by adopting practices from industries fueled by consumer spending. For example, there’s a push for more bill transparency along with interest-free, pay-over-time options to cover medical expenses. We know one of the biggest burdens in the healthcare industry is medical debt. At Gravie, we’ve recognized this trend by building and including a buy-now-pay-later service for out-of-pocket healthcare expenses that is integrated into our health plan.

3. An Emphasis on a More Member-centered Way to Help People Manage Their Health

Millennials are outpacing other generations when it comes to chronic conditions and healthcare utilization. Nationwide, there’s been a push for clinical strategies that focus on intervening early by incentivizing primary care and driving care coordination. Designing benefits that encourage people to get routine care, catch new diagnoses early, and manage chronic conditions well is a critical first step. Smart benefits designs can remove barriers for members to get the care they need while helping manage costs at the same time. We believe the benefits don’t stop with the plan design and should also extend to the support members get when they need to seek care.

4. Greater Focus on Pharmacy Coverage

Prescription drug prices, especially for specialty medications, continue to rise. KFF research reports one in four adults taking prescriptions have trouble affording them, so drug adherence is a growing issue, and the problem only continues to escalate as new drugs, sometimes costing 7-figures, are released to the market every year. That said, health benefits companies and employers alike can do more to offset prescription costs for members and employees.

5. ICHRA Growing in Popularity

Individual Coverage Healthcare Reimbursement Arrangements (ICHRA) have tripled in popularity over the last few years. ICHRAs are often an ideal fit for employers who have segments of their employee population that are seasonal, part-time or spread out across multiple states. They’re also a great alternative for employers who simply need a more flexible way to contribute to their employees’ health benefits. We recently conducted a survey and found that 89% of benefits decision-makers are likely to consider health benefits through ICHRA for their employees in the next three years, and 87% think ICHRA could be a long-term fit for their company.

Partnering with a health benefits provider that is addressing the problems that you and your employees face by investing in new programs, platforms, and digital solutions is the way to level up your benefits strategy.

Author Bio

Ben Simmons is the Chief Strategy Officer at Gravie, a Minnesota-based health benefits company.