As an HR consultancy, we’re always on the look out for ideas we can bring to businesses we work with to help them to support their employees in a sustainable way.
One of the key areas we can make an impact on businesses and therefore their employees, is with benefits.
Whilst some benefits are expensive, such as private medical cover or income protection, there are others which are both low cost and can have a significant impact on employee wellbeing, attendance and retention, and therefore productivity.
Our favourite of these is the healthcare cash plan!
A cash plan is a health insurance policy which is designed to cover the cost of day-to-day health needs, such as routine visits to the dentist, optician, physiotherapist or other therapeutic treatments. A monthly premium is paid and the cash plan reimburses the employee for some or all of the costs of these visits, making this a simple, accessible and affordable way to support your employees health.
Cash plans are often available flexibly with options to adjust the reimbursement for areas of cover offered to employees. For instance, musculoskeletal problems affect many of us, particularly those with desk-bound jobs so you might choose to provide a Cash Plan that offers more cover for physiotherapy, osteopathy or chiropractic treatment.
Cash plans vs private medical insurance
Cash plans enable employees to budget and plan for the costs of their own routine medical or health related expenses and can also be extended to cover the whole family. Private medical insurance can be set up similarly for the whole family, although it is generally targeted at dealing with unexpected medical needs, and if extensions such as physiotherapy are included, this comes with significant extra cost.
Cash plans are substantially cheaper than private medical insurance, and both schemes ultimate aim is a healthy and productive workforce, although the majority of private medical insurance won’t cover pre-existing medical conditions, whereas a cash plans may and you don’t have to be unwell to make use of the policy.
Finally, with a cash plan you’re not restricted on healthcare practitioner, employees can continue to use their regular dentist or optician, where private medical insurance often dictates which hospital or consultant must be seen for the claim to be accepted.
WPA cash plans
We’ve used a number of providers over the years and our current recommended provider is WPA who are a not-for-profit health insurer who provide a number of different options dependents on the size of your organisation. They have options even for businesses with only 2 employees. WPA’s NHS Top-Up Corporate Cash Plan provides a flexible way to support your staff’s health and wellbeing with prices starting from just over £1 per employee per week.
If you think your team and business could benefit from a cash plan, or are considering introducing other benefits, get in touch and we can discuss your requirements and introduce you to WPA.
e: hello@hroverload.co.uk t: 020 8588 9494 w: www.hroverload.co.uk