Revamping the Enrollment Experience

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The Challenge

Phoebe Putney Health System has 3,500+ employees — from physicians and nurses to professional and custodial staff. The hospital system wanted to move away from traditional employer-provided insurance to a program of unified benefits that actually drove wellness. Phoebe Putney envisioned benefits that worked together, with incentives for healthy behavior built into every plan.

The strategy and products to make this vision a reality were in place. Now it was time for an enrollment experience that did more than tell this diverse employee population to sign up.

10–20%

Depending on the benefit, between 10 and 20% of U.S. workers don’t know if their employer contributes to the cost of coverage.

Source: Health and Voluntary Workplace Benefits Survey, Employee Benefits Research Institute, 2016

96%

96% of Americans cannot define these four words: Deductible, Coinsurance, Co-pay, Out-of-pocket maximum.

Source: Health Insurance Literacy Survey, Policygenius/Radius Global Research, October 2017

Questions Facing Phoebe Putney

How could personalized communication and tools help employees fathom the shift in benefits?
  • Employees needed to know how benefits were changing.
  • They needed to grasp the value of their new benefits.
  • They needed support in deciding which benefits were right for them.
How could enrollment serve a diverse group that wanted to sign up for benefits in different ways?
  • Some employees wanted to go online and enroll with no support.
  • Some wanted in-person help with online enrollment.
  • Some wanted a face-to-face assistance in selecting the best benefits for them.
How could the enrollment process educate employees about how benefits worked?

Like the general population, many of Phoebe Putney’s employees didn’t understand the basics behind their insurance benefits.

The Solution

Standard Insurance Company (The Standard)* worked with enrollment firm Hodges-Mace to develop and carry out a strategy for the health care provider.

Better Communication Through the Entire Process

Employees now received a steady stream of information during the year made up of shorter, more focused pieces that were easier to understand.
Meeting Multiple Enrollment Needs

Digital and Human Help

Employees could walk into enrollment centers and sign up throughout the day at a time that worked for them. Each center had laptops and human representatives to meet the demand for the speed of digital and the help of a live person.
A Personalized Tool

Flexible Decision Support

We collaborated with Hodges-Mace on new capabilities and communications. The Standard created flexible decision support tools that worked with different types of employees, depending on how they preferred to learn about and choose benefits.

The Results

A Better Enrollment Experience

Employees could enroll in a way that met their individual needs. They also had the resources throughout the year to help them make the right decisions and complete the process with confidence.

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94→100%

Enrollment participation rose from 94% to 100%.1

6 Pts

Talent retention increased by six points.1

A Better Way

The traditional way of doing open enrollment is like cramming for a final when you didn't study all year. But when you trickle that information out through the year, you can get employees to really pay attention.
Kevin McNamara
Voluntary Practice Leader, The Standard

More About This Case Study

Explore the entire case study to see how a unique partnership helped Phoebe Putney achieve its vision for a program of benefits that drove wellness with incentives built into every product.

Learn the details of how we helped create a new group insurance product that improved benefits for Phoebe Putney Health System employees while also driving business for their employer.

Interested in Partnering With The Standard?
Let’s talk about how we can tailor a solution for you and your employees.