During Insurance Plan Changes, Communication is Key
Changing plans or cutting programs can be treacherous territory for an employer. Workers can react automatically with a “change is bad” mentality—especially if it looks like something is being taken away. This can happen even when the benefits of the new approach are seemingly clear (because it pushes people outside their comfort zone).
Meanwhile, competing companies in the same situation succeed in making the same changes without a hitch. But how?
There’s one essential difference between damaging employee morale and sailing smooth into a more affordable health care scenario: effective communication.
As insurance brokers, we see it as our job to help companies successfully communicate the rationale behind changes. Employees need to understand why changes are happening, what it means for them and how they can get the most out of their new plan or situation.
Sometimes that means sitting down with workers one-on-one to go through the reasons why a change makes sense and answering questions about what comes next. That’s okay. We’re happy to do that because we know how crucial it is to a fruitful transition for all involved.
Recently a client made a group change to a high-deductible, HSA-compatible health care plan. We went to their offices in Portland, Seattle and San Francisco to talk to the affected employees face-to-face. After the initial talks and presentations, only two employees out of 50 still objected to the switch. We listened, answered questions and explained benefits. Once those two fully understood how their new plan worked (that they were still in a rich PPO with the same carrier and vastly improved preventative care), even those two people warmed up.
It’s all about the quality of communication.
But if that’s all it takes, why doesn’t it happen more? Honestly, it’s because quality communication takes time. A broker can’t do it with an e-mail blast or ditto sheet. There’s substantial energy involved, and not all brokers are willing to make the commitment.
So if you’re making changes, be sure your broker is going to be willing to put in the necessary effort to make sure your employees “get it.”