Consumer-Directed Benefits

Employers served by Discovery Benefits in Fargo have been padding coverage in the face of increasing health care costs for the past few years, but have really stepped it up in the past year, says Stephanie Schroeder, vice president of marketing and creative services for Discovery Benefits. They’re offering Flex accounts and health savings accounts, evolving toward consumer-controlled benefits.

“A lot of employers are switching to higher-deductible health plans, so in order to give their employees peace of mind that they’ll still be able to afford their health care, they pair those highdeductible plans with consumer-directed benefits,” Schroeder says.

Employers can contribute to their employees’ health savings accounts and the employees can access those funds whenever they’re needed, she says. “More and more, I think the reason employers are making the switch to these types of accounts is because they put the control in the hands of the consumers. They can decide when they want to tap into it.”

Beyond wanting to find other ways to take care of their employees as traditional health care costs rise, employers also need to be competitive in recruiting and retaining employees, Schroeder says. “It’s really important to offer the most competitive benefits package with the competition for talent right now. Anything employers can do to make their benefits package stack up against others, they’re going to do it.”

The region is in the midst of a lingering workforce shortage that seems to affect almost all industries. Schroeder says it’s across the board, plaguing every industry Discovery Benefits serves. Offering a list of effective employee health benefits goes a long way. “Those are the types of things that can make or break whether you’re going to get that talented candidate in your doors,” she says.

Health care costs won’t be going down in the foreseeable future, LaRock says, so these elective and consumer-directed benefits likely will increase in popularity. “Being intentional about managing this space is going to be a pretty big strategy for regional employers in the next two to three years,” he says. PB

Lisa Gibson EDITOR, PRAIRIE BUSINESS 701.787.6753

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