Insufficient health insurance information available to employees
It turns out that trying to figure out what insurance or benefits they need is causing 53 per cent of American workers’ blood to boil, and it’s having a particularly disruptive effect on younger generations in the workforce
A new study conducted by supplemental insurance firm Aflac – which surveyed 1,200 benefits decision-makers and 2,000 employees across the US – has uncovered that, although a strong connection exists between benefits and happy workers, employers are failing to provide satisfactory benefits packages, and benefits that are provided often invite more confusion than satisfaction.
"After many signs of optimism last year, including record highs in employees’ benefits and job satisfaction, the 2019 Aflac WorkForces Report found that American workers largely are stressed about critical health insurance decisions and less satisfied with their benefits offerings,” said Matthew Owenby, Senior Vice-President, Chief Human Resources Officer at Aflac. “Given the high importance both employees and employers place on benefits, we feel the report’s findings offer valuable insights to understanding the most pressing issues and the unmet needs that can be addressed.”
So, let’s took a look at what the report unearthed. Firstly, it seems that younger generations (millennials and gen Z) are experiencing higher levels of stress when it comes to understanding what insurance or benefits they need (at 68 per cent and 64 per cent respectively) or negotiating medical billing (at 66 per cent and 63 per cent respectively). This is also true when it comes to enrolling in health insurance, where 43 per cent of all employees say they find this process stressful, with percentages increasing to 51 per cent for millennials and 55 per cent for gen Z.
Elsewhere, it seems that benefit satisfaction is on the decline. While 83 per cent of employers that offer benefits agree that company benefits offered increase employee satisfaction, benefit satisfaction appears to have dropped to 52 per cent among workers (compared to the high of 61 per cent that was reached in 2011). In addition, the report highlights that six in 10 American workers are extremely or very satisfied with their jobs, which may seem to be an agreeable number, but this represents a decline of four per cent from 2018.
So, what can be done to improve the situation? Luckily, Alflac’s survey has that covered too. Findings revealed that family history plays an important role in workers’ health insurance decisions, where almost three-quarters (73 per cent) of employees, including 80 per cent of millennials and 75 per cent of gen Z, said their family history is somewhat or extremely influential in guiding their health insurance decisions. And 84 per cent of people surveyed would be likely to purchase insurance to help cover costs associated with a serious illness in their family history (such as cancer, a heart attack or stroke) – this is especially true for gen Z (95 per cent) and millennials (89 per cent).
The report, which is available to read here, also touches upon other subjects, such as the impact that the national debate on health care has had in affecting workers’ approaches to healthcare benefits decisions (hint: it’s proved extremely helpful for younger generations); and that rising medical costs are driving a need for supplemental insurance.
"Adequate information remains the leading unmet need employees cite to being confident about their benefits selections, followed by more money and more help,” commented Owenby. "Understanding the continued trends of workers choosing the same benefits year after year and spending less than 30 minutes researching benefits options, employers need to continue simplifying information across channels and offering resources for one-on-one assistance.”