{"id":2166,"date":"2019-09-10T00:08:25","date_gmt":"2019-09-10T00:08:25","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.oncorehcm.com\/staging\/?p=2166"},"modified":"2019-09-10T00:13:21","modified_gmt":"2019-09-10T00:13:21","slug":"telehealth-is-here-to-stay-so-why-wont-employees-sign-up","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.oncorehcm.com\/staging\/telehealth-is-here-to-stay-so-why-wont-employees-sign-up\/","title":{"rendered":"Telehealth is here to stay, so why won\u2019t employees sign up?"},"content":{"rendered":"\t\t
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Employers have welcomed telehealth benefits with open arms, but they\u2019re having a hard time getting employees to share their enthusiasm.<\/h2>

Almost 75% of major employers offered some type of telehealth benefit in 2018, according to the\u00a0Kaiser Family Foundation Employee Health Benefit Survey<\/u><\/a>, up from just 27% in 2015. That number doesn\u2019t include medium- and small-sized businesses, which also have embraced the benefit.<\/p>

Telehealth, usually defined as medical care delivered via telephone, visual technology or a combination of the two, can often replace more costly trips to the doctor\u2019s office, urgent care center or emergency room. Employers like it because it can potentially cut healthcare costs and offers a convenient way for employees to get the care they need without long waits and high copays.<\/p>

Imagine, for example, an employee is on vacation deep in the woods and gets a nasty rash that could be poison ivy. The employee calls their telehealth provider, sends a picture of the rash and is told within minutes what it is, what over-the-counter medicine to treat it with and where the nearest drugstore is located. Vacation is not interrupted, the employee is happy and their employer saves the cost of a miles long trip to the nearest ER or urgent care.<\/p>

But telehealth doesn\u2019t save employers money if workers don\u2019t use it. The average employee sign-up rate for large employers who offered telehealth services either through their health plan or a specialty vendor was only 8% in 2017, according to the\u00a0Mercer National Survey of Employer-Sponsored Health Plans<\/u><\/a>. J.D. Power\u00a0reports<\/u><\/a>\u00a0only 9.6% of Americans have used telehealth services of all types, including those provided by employers.<\/p>

\u201cTelemedicine makes so much logical sense,\u201d says Beth Umland, director of research for health and benefits at Mercer. \u201cThat\u2019s what\u2019s driving the quick adoption by employers and health plan services. But utilization has been lagging.\u201d<\/p>

\u201cIt\u2019s definitely difficult for employers to break down the barriers and get employees to try telehealth,\u201d says Elie Goodman, vice president of marketing at MeMD, a telehealth provider.<\/p>

\u201cOur data shows that once employees try telehealth, they\u2019ll use it again. But getting them to take that first step is the challenge.\u201d<\/p>

Then what is keeping employees from making the call, clicking on the URL or downloading the app? Three things, says Stephany Verstraete, chief marketing officer at Teladoc Health.<\/p>

\u201cFirst, many times employees don\u2019t know they have the benefit. Second, employees don\u2019t remember they have the benefit at the moment they need it. Third is the notion of behavior change. Employees are hesitant at first, asking themselves is this quality care?\u201d she says.<\/p>

All three stumbling blocks can stem from a lack of education and communication on the part of the employer, Verstraete adds.<\/p>

But some employers are bucking the low utilization trend. The U.S. division of Adecco, for example, the Swiss-based human resources and temporary staffing company, has logged a 44% utilization rate among U.S. staffers since it began providing telehealth benefits about two years ago. The company says it has saved more the $230,000 in total thanks to its telehealth services.<\/p>

\u201cThe fact that Adecco is an HR company and excels in people management probably has something to do with their success,\u201d says Mary Modahl, senior vice president and chief marketing officer at American Well, Adecco\u2019s telehealth provider. More important is the fact that Adecco has executed and continues to execute the full communications program around telehealth, explains Modahl. That includes emails, direct mail, posters, videos, membership cards and ongoing seasonal and news-oriented communications.<\/p>

\u201cSome HR teams are less confident about doing a full communications program and that can limit their success. Adecco\u2019s team has been very face forward and effective,\u201d Modahl explains.<\/p>

Employee Benefit News<\/i>\u00a0spoke with several leading telehealth providers to find out what other companies with successful telehealth engagement rates are doing. These best practices may offer some ideas for boosting engagement with a telehealth program.<\/p>

Stress quality and convenience<\/b><\/p>

To allay employees\u2019 concerns always stress the quality of your telehealth offering, clearly communicate the qualifications of doctors and other health professionals employees are likely to encounter.<\/p>

Telehealth provider Doctor on Demand offers a favorite doctor service. Employees can ask for the same doctor to help feel more confident and comfortable with telehealth visits. \u201cThis enables employees to experience a continuum of care,\u201d says Cameron Hume, senior director of account management at Doctor on Demand.<\/p>

At the same time, play up the convenience factor, the aspect of telehealth that is most appealing to employees. Adecco found the average telehealth visit lasted about 6 minutes compared to a 121-minute visit to the doctor\u2019s office.<\/p>

The company also used testimonials from top executives who had themselves used the service to get employees to try it. \u201cWe had fun with our employees while getting the word out about [American Well],\u2019\u201d says Brian Evans, vice president of human resources for Adecco Group, in a case study published by American Well.<\/p>

Tailor communications to different demographics<\/b><\/p>

Millennials, who are comfortable with technology and likely don\u2019t have a primary care physician, are high potential targets for telehealth. But don\u2019t overlook the need for these services among employees age 45 to 60, who can be squeezed between the health needs of themselves, their own kids and aging parents, says Modahl. Communications tailored to individual demographic groups can be more effective than one-size-fits-all messages, MeMD\u2019s Goodman says.<\/p>

Frequent touchpoints also help. Reminders that telehealth is there to help during flu season, natural disasters, measles outbreaks and other events can help drive utilization. One MeMD client encourages managers to remind employees who call in sick that telehealth is available to them, Goodman says.<\/p>

Use data to help target employees<\/b><\/p>

Teladoc helps clients use claims data and other analytics to identify and reach employees based on their specific care needs, explains Verstraete.<\/p>

\u201cA first communication may be a welcome kit that goes to everyone but a second communication may be a targeted email or digital outreach via Facebook to employees who may need mental healthcare benefits,\u201d she says.<\/p>

Keep copays low<\/b><\/p>

Some employees hesitate to use telehealth because they figure the telehealth provider will just tell them to see their doctor, meaning they end up paying two copays instead of one. In some cases this does happen but not always. Keeping copays low can help minimize this complaint when it does.<\/p>

\u201cAmong midsize employers we\u2019re seeing that once an employer makes telehealth available for free, utilization rates can rise 40%,\u201d says Modahl. Employer cost-savings is significant enough to make the zero copay worth it, she adds.<\/p>

Put telehealth in the employee\u2019s pocket\u00a0<\/b>\u2014\u00a0or wallet, key chain or phone<\/b><\/p>

Make sure employees have easy access to the telephone number, URL and smart phone app. It sounds basic, says Verstraete, \u201cbut if it\u2019s not right in front of them, they won\u2019t do it.\u201d Providers have discovered a number of successful ways to do this, including key chain cards, text messages with links, phone numbers and wallet cards.<\/p>

Incentives also help. Adecco offered gift cards to all employees who signed up for the app. Wellness dollars and healthcare cost discounts are also popular.<\/p>

Telehealth is pervasive and growing all the time, says Umland. \u201cNow employers just need to convince employees how great it is,\u201d she adds.<\/p><\/div><\/div><\/div><\/div>\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n\t\t\t\t

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