How can the health benefits that small businesses offer their employees help them as they return their teams to the workplace?

As they return their teams to the workplace, employers want to ensure that employees remain healthy, secure and productive. The health benefits they offer their employees can help. Employers should communicate the value of their benefits to returning employees, and should consider adding these if not part of their current offering:

• Telehealth. All major carriers have temporarily enhanced their telehealth benefits in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. Also, some carrier plans offer comprehensive telehealth benefits as part of the regular schedule of benefits.
• Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs). Many employers will have an EAP bundled with one of their existing lines of coverage. For those that don’t, EAPs are available both on a stand-alone basis and often as an additional benefit alongside life and disability coverage.
• Mental health and wellness. All major carriers provide value-add wellness programs, and have expanded their mental health offerings in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.
• Disability Insurance. Especially during this time, disability coverage helps employees feel that they and their families will be protected if they have to be out of work due to illness or injury.
• Remote work and emergency response benefits. These account-based benefits help employees stay productive and financially secure.

Each of your client’s needs is situational. Contact us for assistance in evaluating the benefits offerings that best meet their needs.

What health benefits concerns should employers be considering as they reopen and return employees to work?

Employers should ensure that employees are aware of the enhancements to benefits and coverage that carriers have introduced in response to COVID-19: 

• Waiving of cost sharing for COVID-19 testing and treatment. 
• Telehealth availability and waiving of cost sharing. 
• Pharmacy: Waiving of early refill limits and availability of no-cost home delivery. 

Most carriers’ COVID-19 enhanced benefits have expiry dates. Employers should ensure that employees are aware of these. Our COVID-19 Carrier Response Guides provide a helpful summary of each carrier’s actions in these areas. 

Employers should also communicate to employees the benefits currently available to them and how best to use them, including: 

• Emotional and Behavioral Health benefits and services 
• Employee Assistance Programs (EAPs) 
• UnitedHealthcare has published helpful tips on how employees can make the most of their specialty benefits from home.

Most carriers are providing helpful resources for members on coverage and access to care. (e.g. Blue Shield, UnitedHealthcare)

Employers may want to consider additional benefits to help employees, including emergency response benefits such as Section 139 accounts. 

Employers will want to ensure any recent and upcoming changes to benefits are made in a compliant manner. For example: 

• Reinstatement of benefits/ waiting periods. If an employee’s coverage was terminated during a layoff or furlough, the employer will need to determine if the employee is immediately eligible for benefits on return to work or if the employee needs to complete a new waiting period. 

Benefits compliance concerns will largely be situational. Contact Claremont for assistance. 

Claremont Insurance Services and its affiliates do not provide tax, legal or accounting advice. This material has been prepared for informational purposes only, and is not intended to provide, and should not be relied on for, tax, legal or accounting advice. You should consult your own tax, legal and accounting advisors before engaging in any transaction.