You’ve made it through open enrollment. Your employees have chosen their healthcare benefits and have decided whether to participate in certain plans and programs. But how do you ensure your people are maximizing those benefits and optimizing the resources they have, like contributing to a health savings account (HSA) for more than annual healthcare expenses?
Most high-deductible health plan (HDHP) participants use HSAs to set aside money for essential healthcare expenses, such as copays, prescription costs and unexpected hospital visits. But the benefits of an HSA don’t stop there—it can be a great tool for saving money for retirement or investing in external funds to drive steady financial growth. Getting your employees to contribute or increase their contributions to their HSAs for more than just basic healthcare necessities is a task to be tackled from multiple angles.
Educate and empower
For starters, a vital way to increase employee HSA contribution rates is to educate them thoroughly on the beneficial features of the account, its accessibility and convenience. Are your employees aware of how easy it is to access their account information or pay for out-of-pocket expenses from their account? Do they know that they can enroll, increase or decrease their contributions to the plan at any time during the year? Do they know they are able to access their funds should an unexpected expenditure come up, or that there are resources they can use to handle their investments for them? Highlight the value of an HSA and the attractive benefits of using it today, or saving for tomorrow or into retirement.
Know your audience
Not all employees are alike nor are they in the same stage of life. While a 45-year-old may be more open to investing a portion of their HSA balance into investment funds, a 25-year-old may have other needs for immediate funds, such as paying off student loans or making rent. In some circumstances, he or she may not have funds to roll over at year-end—or even have an HSA to begin with. Knowing your audience and what’s important to them to is a good place to start. That way, you can identify the best method to reach them and explain the value of contributing in a clear, relatable manner.
Communicate with a purpose
In addition to getting to know your employees, identify the tactics in which they prefer to receive communications or information on their reimbursement tools, like an HSA. With today’s technology, it’s easy to collect data on what’s relevant to an employee to ensure communications are specifically catered to their needs, wants and preferences. Finding a partner who can offer beneficial communications strategies, like hyper-personalization solutions, can both benefit your employees and increase the impact of your messages.
Participation in an HSA may be simple, but increasing your employee contribution rates is not as clear-cut. If you’re ready to explore your options, download our free infographic to learn more about your people, their benefits habits and how to effectively increase their HSA contributions to optimize their savings for the future.
