Do Employee Health & Wellness Programs Need A Shot In The Arm? - Accenture

DO EMPLOYEE HEALTH &WELLNESS PROGRAMSNEED A SHOTIN THE ARM?SURVEYS REVEAL HIGH EXPECTATIONSAND LOW USE OF PROGRAMS

Accenture research showsthat 82 percent of employedconsumers believe theiremployers or health plans shouldprovide health and wellnessprograms—but the programsoffered today are falling short oftheir needs and expectations.HEALTH & WELLNESSPROGRAMSare portfolios of servicesthat help people improvetheir ability to manage theirhealth and wellness. Theseservices are offered viamultiple channels, and spanin focus from driving use ofpreventive care to managingspecific health events (e.g.,maternity), to providingcoaching in support oflifestyle changes (e.g.,smoking and weight loss).There is a distinct gap betweenprograms offered versus awarenessand use of these programs (see Figure1). The research found awarenessand utilization of health and wellnessprograms offered by health planswas extremely low—62 percent ofemployees were unaware of basicservices, such as a provider finder. Inaddition, less than 10 percent wereutilizing any other programs offered.FIGURE 1. Employee awareness and use of wellness programs is low96%97%95%22%7%Chronic Management21%ProviderFinder21%14%8%Medical CostEstimators5%QualityComparisonToolsUseSource: Accenture 2016 Employer Health and Wellness Survey and Accenture 2016 Employee Health and Wellness Survey1The Willis Health and Productivity Survey Report port-20142Ibid.1

More than half (54 percent) ofemployees surveyed felt their employersponsored health insurance plan shouldprovide these programs. Twenty-eightpercent believe health and wellnessservices should be offered through aspecific employer program outside oftheir health plan and only 13 percentfelt their family physician should offersuch a program.Employers are increasingly lookingoutside of health plans to access healthand wellness services. Industry surveysfound 44 percent of employers saidthey used a third-party vendor tosupport their wellness program, up 18percent from the previous year of thesurvey.1 Among those using a thirdparty vendor, 35 percent reportedbeing “very satisfied” and 13 percentwere “extremely satisfied.”2Clearly, health plans are failing to reachand have impact on people through theircurrent health and wellness products,so they must rethink how they design,market, and operate these products orrisk being carved out of this business.EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENTHINGES ONDIGITALHealth plans are missing the boaton engagement. Many of today’semployees want to interact digitally, asthey do in their everyday lives.Accenture research shows employeesengage more with health and wellnessprograms when there is a digitalengagement channel.For instance, people who engagedigitally respond they access theprogram weekly—70 percent from amobile device and 40 percent from acomputer.Unfortunately, most plan-sponsoredhealth and wellness programs lackrelevant digital access. Less than 50percent of employees report havingaccess to these programs via theircomputers and less than 25 percentreport access via their mobile device.These types of programs are so important to employees some respondthat they will pay for them. Top programs where employees respondedthey would be willing to pay TRACKING25%MATERNITY24%MENTALHEALTH2

Other business-to-consumer and third-party models in the marketplace aremeeting these digital demands. For example:Digital behavior change program Omadahelps users lose weight and reduce their riskof chronic disease through programs thatseamlessly integrate with users’ everyday livesacross interaction channels.On-demand healthcare concierge Accolade,which offers mobile, web and telephonicsolutions, touts 70 percent engagement and98 percent consumer satisfaction.Ovia Health, which offers mobile fertility,pregnancy and maternity programs, states95 percent of enrolled employees engage inbenefits content via the company’s app.EMPLOYEES STRONGLY INFLUENCEEMPLOYER BUYING DECISIONSDigital access for a broad range of consumer-facing services, combined with theincreased availability and popularity of fitness and other health-tracking devices,has elevated employees’ expectations for health services. Employers have soughtand are acting on employee-generated requirements for health and wellnessprograms. In fact, employee surveys on care management decisions influence 59percent of employers, versus 43 percent being influenced by brokers/consultantsand 47 percent influenced by industry peers.3

When asked why they are not usinghealth and wellness programs, 40percent of employees report it isbecause “one or more components ofmy wellness program offered by myemployer are not relevant to me” or “hasno apparent value” and 26 percent ofemployees report the program is “toodifficult” or “takes too much time” (seeFigure 2).Such insights are causing employersto look toward third parties that candeliver on rising expectations. Amongemployers surveyed, 79 percent selectedthird-party solutions over health plans.Nearly 44 percent of employers chosea program from a third party instead of9%a health plan because they felt one ormore components was considered morevaluable than the carrier offering.FIGURE 2.Factors influencing lack ofprogram utilization9%Do not wwith em26%40%Programno appaProgramtakes to25%OthersProgram not relevant orno apparent valueProgram is difficult ortakes too long to use25%Some of the lack of utilization factors,including engagement taking too muchtime or program not relevant, may becontributing to 68 percent of employeeseducating themselves on healthcareversus only 7 percent being educatedthrough their health plans.40%Do not want to share informationwith employer or health plan26%OthersSource: Accenture 2016 Employee Healthand Wellness SurveyIf health plans fail to developdigitally accessible products andservices that engage consumersand deliver value, they are at riskof losing market share.4

SUCCESS INDICATORSHAVE CHANGEDEmployees’ expectations areinfluencing purchasing decisionsamong employers, while at the sametime, employers lack confidence in thevalue health plans are delivering.Accenture research on employerbuying behaviors revealsemployers view employee activeengagement as a key measure ofsuccess, above same-year claimcost reduction.When asked what they are lookingfor in a health and wellness program,employers (84 percent) ratedemployee engagement numberFIGURE 3. Employer reasons for looking tothird-party provider of health and wellnessprogram components50%46%one overall, higher than return oninvestment (ROI, 79 percent). ROIcontinues to be elusive to prove,with only 39 percent of employersresponding that they have confidencethese programs deliver ROI. Employersunderstand they need to offerhealth and wellness programs todemonstrate their commitment totheir employees and be competitiveagainst their market peers. The datasuggest employers are looking at theiremployees’ use of these programs asthe true measure of their value, bothin terms of the number of employeeswho access the programs, and thepersistency of that access (how oftenand for how long).Perhaps most alarming for healthplans, 60 percent of employers reportthey are looking to reduce scope ofservices purchased from health plans.The top reason employers are lookingto third-party providers of health andwellness program components isbecause employers see third partiesas offering more valuable componentsthan health plans (see Figure tedSuperiorcontinuity “look and feel”Others% of employersstatingeachreason forsourcing programSource: Accenture2016 EmployerHealthand WellnessSurvey5

THE GAME PLANFOR HEALTH PLANSTo compete, health plans must modify their health and wellness products to bedesigned to better appeal to employees’ desires for relevant, multi-channel servicesthat are digitally enabled.123HERE’S HOW:Know your customer’s customer. Employers are listening to what employeeswant, and health plans should listen, too. Understand what key features aremost important, what programs are most desired and how employees wouldwant to access programs. For employers measuring success based on employeeengagement, these programs must be digitally enabled and user-friendly topromote use.Be future ready. Emerging digital trends are influencing the way services aredelivered—and the landscape changes every day. Look to the developing trendof artificial intelligence as the new user interface through which voice interfacesand chatbots help solve engagement issues. Also, there is a rising need tomanage for individuals, not populations. Artificial intelligence for the enterprisecan provide insights into how to modify or expand services, and it can yieldopportunities for better personalization through a continuous learning loop. Thekey is to continually iterate to keep pace with changing demands.Tap into the ecosystem. Creating leading-edge digital solutions isn’t a corecapability for all health plans, so determine the best path forward. Does it makesense to develop a solution, partner with others and white label, or have an opensystem where the health plan can collaborate with a number of other providersfor services ranging from analytics to security to digital marketing?6

Employees want access tohealth and wellness programs,and employers want to deliverprograms their employees willuse and find valuable. Activeemployee engagement maylead to a healthier and happierworkforce. Health plans mustheed this wakeup call andrethink how they shape and sellhealth and wellness products,before it’s too late.7