Part 1 - Plan Design

In this section we share our tried and true best practices to help you boost adoption rates effectively, including:

1. Offer HSA BRIDGE

2. Ease employees into stepped deductible plans

3. Provide the proper number of choices

4. Map out a migration plan

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OFFER HSA BRIDGE

HSA BRIDGE allows HSA participants to receive HSA contributions on an as-needed basis instead of waiting for funds to accumulate through payroll deductions.

This optional feature makes sure your employees have funds when they need them, cutting down on the stress of unforeseen expenses.

When it comes to financial or healthcare decisions, most of us will take a safe path that covers the “what if’s” in life. Often, it is fear that prevents employees from enrolling in a qualifying high deductible health plan with an HSA. HSA BRIDGE provides employees with the safety net to enroll, driving HSA adoption.

ADMINISTRATION TIP: CREATE BALANCED OFFERINGS

Assembling a collection of different options through various combinations of health accounts like Health Savings Accounts, Flexible Spending Accounts, and Health Reimbursement Accounts allows employees to maximize benefits as they save money, optimize eligibility, and seamlessly transition between plans.

EASE EMPLOYEES INTO STEPPED DEDUCTIBLE PLANS

Another part of increasing HSA adoption is to introduce stepped deductible plans gradually. The keyword being gradually. From an employee’s perspective, transitioning from a co-pay plan to a deductible plan with a $1,500 (or higher) deductible will understandably lead to some hesitancy around signing up.

HOW TO GET AROUND IT

Transform your current co-pay plan to a low or moderate deductible plan. Then, on a year-by-year basis, gradually increase it.

5 TIPS TO POSITIVELY POSITION HIGH DEDUCTIBLE PLANS:

1. Market them as “low-cost premium plans.”

2. Show side-by-side savings between high premium and low premium plans.

3. Give both monthly and annual savings examples.

4. Describe how the plan works under different medical expense scenarios.

5. Illustrate how premium savings, employer contributions, and tax savings combine for an attractive benefits offering.

PROVIDE THE PROPER NUMBER OF CHOICES

While providing choice is generally viewed favorably, providing too many options can overwhelm employees, reducing your ability to drive change. We recommend offering no more than three deductible-based plans at varying tiers.

The result? Your employees have a fair number of choices without feeling overwhelmed (and they become more comfortable with high deductible plans!).

ADMINISTRATION TIP: USE A DECISION SUPPORT TOOL

Decision support tools like BRI Insights incorporate personalized recommendations and visual representations to increase employee comprehension of benefit offerings.

MAP OUT A MIGRATION PLAN

You’re almost done!T

he next best practice is to map out a migration plan to move employees to an HSA.A

big part of this is mapping out the why, how, and what for employees:

• WHY they should migrate

• HOW to migrate

• WHAT they can expect during and after the migration

FINAL CONSIDERATIONS

BEST PRACTICES

Your plan is mapped out, but how do you keep your employees engaged? We’ve boiled it down to a simple pair of best practices:

DO USE: ACTIVE ENROLLMENT STRATEGY

Avoid allowing employees to default into their existing plans. Instead, require “active” enrollment to give employees a chance to make a better benefit choice (like an HSA).

DON’T USE: TECHNICAL JARGON

Reduce the use of technical terms and choose easyto-understand language to deliver new ideas and information.

YOUR PLAN DESIGN IS ALL SET!

Next, to continue your plan to achieve your goal of increasing adoption, it’s time to consider how to structure contributions.