As a business owner, you’re committed to making careful, smart choices to keep your business growing and your employees happy.

But did you know that strong benefits can help you achieve both? Supplemental insurance is a simple, affordable way to help your employees protect their financial security in the event of a serious accident or illness.

Traditional health insurance pays doctors and hospitals, while supplemental insurance pays benefits directly to employees,* no matter what other insurance they have in place.

If they’re sick or hurt, it can be used in any way they see fit – whether that’s for leftover medical expenses and other bills threatening their financial security. It’s their money to use their way.

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Supplemental insurance: more relevant now than ever before

 

Changes to the health care landscape – including health care reform and rising medical costs – make supplemental insurance more viable than ever. For employees, it is a practical way to help protect their financial security. For employers, it’s a smart strategy for controlling expenses while helping employees remain financially secure. What’s more, the peace of mind supplemental insurance helps provide can go a long way toward improving employee contentment, morale, productivity and retention.

 

How is supplemental insurance bought and sold?

 

Supplemental options, such as accident, disability, hospitalization and other choices, are available through private exchanges, insurance agents and brokers.

 

The good news is that most supplemental insurance premiums are paid by employees who opt to apply, so they can be offered by employers with little or no direct effect on their bottom lines.

 

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To sum up, supplemental insurance:

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• Strengthens employers’ overall benefits packages.

• Helps provide employees with financial peace of mind with cash benefits to pay out-of-pocket medical expenses and other bills.

• Improves employees’ focus, productivity and job satisfaction by helping reduce financial stress and anxiety.

 

Understanding the array of supplemental policies — and what they cover

 

There are many types of supplemental insurance, and employees can customize their plans to meet their unique needs and financial circumstances. If they’re sick or injured, benefits can be used in any way they see fit.

 

Here are some of the options employers can make available to their workforce:

 

Accident insurance

 

An accident can happen to anyone at any time – and the financial impact can be significant.

Even minor accidents can lead to large medical bills or missed work, resulting in financial hardship. Regular bills – including mortgage or rent, groceries and utilities – don’t stop when an employee is out of work after an accident. Supplemental accident benefits are paid directly to the policyholder* as cash that can be used however it’s needed — even to help with everyday living expenses.

 

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Cancer insurance

 

It’s important to consider how your employees would manage if they or a family member were diagnosed with cancer and missed work for treatment. The reality is that financial barriers can often delay care, and that can have serious repercussions. Nearly 2 million new cancer cases were diagnosed in 2018  and medical bills contribute to more than 58% of bankruptcies. The financial impact of cancer doesn’t go away.

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Hospital confinement indemnity insurance

 

If you’ve ever experienced an injury or illness that required a hospital visit or stay, you know how expensive the bill can be — even after health insurance pays its share. And that price tag keeps rising as costs associated with inpatient hospital services increase and a greater share of deductibles and copays shift to individuals. In fact, many adults are financially vulnerable and would have difficulty handling an emergency expense as small as $400.3

 

A hospital indemnity insurance policy gives cash benefits to your employees* for covered hospitalizations, because even with the best health insurance, an entire hospital bill may not be covered.

 

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Short-term disability insurance

 

As workers strive to safeguard their finances, one area that garners little attention is disability insurance. Many Americans underestimate their personal vulnerability to experiencing a disability and overestimate the resources available to them in such a predicament. In fact, just over one in four of today’s 20-year-olds will become disabled before reaching age 67.5 And considering that only 48% of American adults indicate they have enough savings to cover three months of living expenses in the event they’re not earning any income.6 There’s a growing need for supplemental disability insurance.

 

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