Mercer Marsh Benefits

Forging a healthier tomorrow: How employers can help transform health benefits for their people

Employers can address gaps in public healthcare by investing in modern health benefits designed to meet employees’ needs.

Healthcare systems around the world are facing multiple challenges, with clinicians struggling under the intense demands of today’s complex health issues and critical staff shortages. Employers can play a role in easing this burden by helping to create new models of care, addressing gaps in public healthcare provision and investing in modern health benefits designed to meet employees’ physical and psychological needs.

Since the COVID-19 pandemic, strained healthcare systems have struggled to provide many services, leading to missed diagnoses, substandard treatments and lower-quality care.¹ The impact on the workforce has been significant. According to our People Risk 2024 report, 39% of employers are concerned about the rising cost of private medical insurance claims, 46% are worried about increasing rates of sickness absence, and 47% are concerned about productivity losses as employees are forced to spend more time and energy on sourcing, navigating and traveling for healthcare.²

At the same time, organizations are witnessing growing levels of stress, depression, anxiety and burnout among their people, leading to challenges in productivity, absenteeism and turnover.³ In our research, mental health deterioration was ranked the most severe risk by HR professionals and the number-six risk by risk managers.⁴ Employers recognize that managing work-related stress is more important than ever, yet many worry their emotional well-being programs are failing to meet the workforce’s growing needs.

Clearly, this situation cannot continue. As systems struggle to keep up with aging populations and labor shortages, employers have a unique opportunity to become a catalyst for sorely needed health transformation. They should use their influence to drive this change, advancing health support for their employees and filling the gaps within traditional systems of healthcare, such as in preventive care.

Creating new models of care

Employers can begin by creating benefits packages that provide access to good-quality healthcare for all, not just for those in management and other senior positions. This might involve extending private medical coverage to supplement government programs or expanding corporate sick pay to those who need it most. But employers also have unique opportunities to go beyond these standard approaches. They should innovate and modernize their benefits to foster inclusivity and meet employees’ changing expectations.

For example, they can make greater use of digital health practices and products, such as diagnostic interventions or virtual care, to ease pressure on health systems and improve availability for staff. These kinds of benefits not only help keep workers healthy but also greatly enhance the employee value proposition and employee experience, resonating with different employee groups and helping to attract and retain top talent.

Employers continue to be one of the institutions most trusted to provide health solutions that are high quality, convenient, affordable and secure, whether these are provided through public or private healthcare systems.⁵ Employees rely on them to pick the right solutions and provide access to the products and services they need. Increasingly, this involves designing hybrid healthcare packages, combining good-quality, easy-to-use virtual care benefits, delivered through apps on mobile phones, with direct access to primary care providers. These benefits, when aggregated under one portal as a digital “front door”, support employees in navigating their employer-provided benefits when they need them most.

Modernizing benefits for relevance

Organizations should also regularly review their benefits programs to ensure they remain relevant, particularly in today’s shifting health landscape. For example, our People Risk research found that 38% of employers are concerned about both employer-sponsored and government benefits being insufficient to cover climate-related health conditions, such as heat-related illnesses and mosquito-borne diseases.⁶ Businesses increasingly need to approach their benefits strategies through a climate lens.

At the same time, employers should reflect on the role they can play in protecting employee health. This includes creating an employee-centric environment and designing jobs with the health and safety of their employees front and center — particularly for mental well-being. This means paying a living wage, providing work that is safe and secure, listening to and engaging with staff, developing consistent and transparent career paths, and offering roles with reasonable hours and flexible working.

Employers should also implement mental health programs that cater to the diverse needs of their workforces, including ensuring access to professional assistance when needed. It’s also crucial to create a culture of psychological safety, where employees feel protected from risks and understand their purpose within the wider business.

This is not always easy, and employers can benefit from seeking expert advice and guidance when designing well-being strategies and implementing cultural change.⁷ When done properly, good job design can boost organizational and individual resilience, enabling a healthy workforce and minimizing employee stress and burnout.

Transforming health, building resilience

Employers that prioritize employee well-being will ultimately cultivate a more robust and resilient workforce.⁸ By investing in health benefits for all, promoting mental health and fostering a supportive work environment, employers can have a positive impact on employee morale, productivity and retention. Developing strategic partnerships with healthcare providers and community organizations and continuing to monitor employees’ needs can help organizations tailor health and well-being programs to ensure they remain effective. This will play a crucial role in filling the gaps left by traditional healthcare systems.

1 World Health Organization. “Patient Safety,” September 11, 2023, available at https://www.who.int/news-room/fact-sheets/detail/patient-safety.

2 Mercer and Marsh. People Risk 2024, available at https://www.mercer.com/insights/people-strategy/people-risks-and-business-resilience/people-risk-management/ and https://www.marsh.com/en/risks/people-risk/insights/the-five-pillars-of-people-risk.html.

3 Mercer and Marsh. People Risk 2024.

4 Mercer and Marsh. People Risk 2024.

5 Mercer and Marsh. Health on Demand, 2024, available at https://www.mercer.com/insights/total-rewards/employee-benefits-strategy/health-on-demand-2023-survey-report/ and https://www.marsh.com/en/services/employee-health-benefits/insights/health-on-demand.html.

6 Mercer and Marsh. People Risk 2024.

7 Mercer. “Employee Benefits Plan Strategy and Design,” available at https://www.mercer.com/solutions/health-and-benefits/employee-benefits-strategy-and-consulting/employee-benefits-strategy-and-design/. Marsh. “Employee Health and Benefits,” available at https://www.marsh.com/en/services/employee-health-benefits.html.

8 Mercer. “Create Positive Impact Through ESG and Sustainability,” available at https://www.mercer.com/insights/talent-and-transformation/esg-sustainability/. Marsh. “Building Workforce Resilience,” available at https://www.marsh.com/en/services/employee-health-benefits/expertise/workforce-resilience-and-wellbeing.html.