Rising healthcare inequality in Asia: Why employers should step up (and how)

With the triple challenge of a cost of living crisis, ageing population and medical inflation, Asia is headed into a perfect storm with a US$1.8 trillion protection gap. And as government and out-of-pocket spending both have their limits, companies must realise they have a big role in fulfilling employees' health needs, and that doing so can help them reap multiple benefits including lower attrition, reduced claims, and greater productivity.

You can gain more insight into the strategies and solutions to achieve these outcomes in the free Mercer Marsh Benefits (MMB) report 'Rising costs and healthcare inequality in Asia: Impact on middle class workforce & solutions.'

Mitigating healthcare inequality by addressing unmet needs: 5 areas employers should focus on

As rising healthcare inequality threatens to compromise workforce health and productivity, employers can tackle this by identifying and addressing the key unmet needs of their workforce, and in doing so can build a robust relationship with their employees and become an 'employer of choice'. MMB identified five key unmet needs and important questions that employers need to answer:

• Family needs (link to article): Do your health and benefit plans include dependent coverage at a competitive cost? Do your HR policies cater to working parents and dual caregivers?
• Unique needs (link to article): What programs do you have to build a workforce that is welcoming of differences and compassionate towards unique needs? How do your health and benefits plans demonstrate Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI)?
• Preventative care needs: Does your health and benefits plan include health risk assessments, and what steps are you taking to encourage the uptake of preventative screening and a healthy lifestyle? Have you considered offering telemedicine services to employees in locations where quality outpatient medical care may not be accessible?
• Ageing needs: Does your health and benefits program promote healthy ageing among your workforce? Have you considered supporting employees in their retirement, via an employee-sponsored retirement savings plan or similar solution?
• Climate-related health needs: Are you promoting green practices such as recycling and waste reduction in the workplace? Are you providing incentives to employees who utilise public transportation or carpooling?

To help employers answer these questions, MMB's workforce health and benefits consultants offer their insights: An Q&A with Wimon Changthongkham , MMB Leader for Thailand and Steven Yu , MMB Leader for China reveals how employers can find cost-effective solutions and restructure their benefits to help caregiver employees feel valued.

Another article focusing on unique needs by Julia Radchenko , Health Consulting Leader, MMB Singapore, and Eima Azim , Regional Consulting Leader, MMB South East Asia and Hong Kong, includes case studies that show how employers can maximise DEI outcomes and drive business growth through inclusivity.

The main takeaway? The key to tailoring your benefits to cater for unique needs is to find the equilibrium between providing accessibility to these benefits and financial feasibility for your company.

What's next in Rewarding Risk?

In our next Rewarding Risk article, we will share best practices and solutions available to businesses in the face of increasing losses from cybersecurity incidents and a challenging cyber insurance market by answering the question: How can my organisation be well-prepared amidst complex and evolving cyber risks?

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