Vision care may now be a vital part of every benefits package, but most employees aren't even using your plan. Only 14% of the workforce uses its vision benefits to obtain glasses and 10% for contacts each year—but it's estimated that 75% of Americans need corrective eyewear.
To support your employees and boost the value of your benefits program, it's crucial to rethink your approach to vision care and choose plans that keep costs manageable, offer comprehensive coverage, and help employees prioritize their vision health. Here's how to do it.
1. Opt for Comprehensive Coverage
Not all vision plans are comprehensive out of the box. In fact, many cover just the basics, like glasses or routine eye exams once a year. However, these benefits don't meet the expectations or needs of a modern and dynamic workforce. Employees today expect their healthcare to be more comprehensive and personalized, which also extends to vision care.
By choosing more comprehensive coverage, you can help employees take a proactive approach to managing their vision health. Offering access to regular eye exams will do more than just keep prescriptions up to date—they can also help detect early signs of chronic conditions such as diabetes, hypertension, and more. It’s estimated that early detection of eye diseases saves companies $7 for every $1 invested.
Comprehensive vision coverage can also help reduce out-of-pocket expenses employees must pay for routine eye care needs, such as prescription glasses, contact lenses, treatments, and more.
2. Embrace Accessibility and Flexibility
Accessibility in vision care means ensuring that employees can use their benefits to suit their lifestyle. That means ditching a one-size-fits-all approach that focuses primarily on in-person visits once a year and one set of discount frames. Employees and their families have very different needs, schedules, and health concerns, so it’s crucial that your vision care benefits reflect these realities and can adapt and flex to their needs.
Here are a Few Key Factors to Consider for Your Next Vision Plan:
A wide network of providers: Employees shouldn’t have to travel far to find quality eye care. Opt for a broad network of providers, including options in both urban and rural areas, to ensure that your employees have access to the care they need when they need it.
Telehealth options: The pandemic ushered in a new era for digital healthcare, and more employees than ever are comfortable relying on it. Including a telehealth option in your vision care package offers employees the flexibility they need to schedule appointments or consult with their doctors online at times that work best for their schedules.
Non-prescription eyewear coverage: With employees spending more time in front of screens and on their devices, benefits that cover computer glasses, blue light-blocking lenses, and sunglasses can all help reduce the impact of conditions like digital eye strain and improve productivity. This kind of plan flexibility ensures that your vision benefits are relevant to and usable by all employees, whether they need corrective lenses or not.
3. Know How to Promote Your Vision Plans
A great benefits package is only effective if employees know about it – and how to use it. A recent study by the Harris Poll and XP Health reveals that 59% of employees say their employer doesn’t provide enough information about available plans, leading to low engagement and utilization. The hard truth for HR leaders is that many employees are simply unaware of the full extent of their company’s vision care benefits and/or the importance of regular eye care. This is where you can play a vital role.
Communicate Regularly
Clear and frequent communication is essential for ensuring that employees fully understand and utilize their vision care benefits. By providing regular updates through employee newsletters, benefit spotlights, and other regular internal communications, you can highlight the advantages of your benefits and spur your people to take action.
Offer Resources to Your Team
In addition, providing educational resources, like workshops or “lunch and learn” webinars, can empower employees to make informed decisions about their eye health. Offering these types of resources can help demystify how to leverage your vision care to address their needs.
Incentivize Utilization
Lastly, employees should be actively encouraged to use their vision care benefits. Whether you send personalized reminders, offer incentives for scheduling regular eye exams, or even promote success stories from employees who have benefitted from early detection, creating a workplace culture that prioritizes eye health both increases utilization rates and contributes to a healthier, more productive workforce.
Wrapping Up
As you consider enhancing your company’s vision care offerings, keep these three pillars in mind: comprehensive coverage, accessibility and flexibility, and education and awareness. By focusing on these areas, you can create a vision care plan that not only meets the diverse needs of your employees but also promotes their long-term health and satisfaction.
In the competitive landscape of employee benefits, a well-rounded vision care plan is an investment in your workforce’s well-being and, ultimately, your company’s success.
