Employers will change their list of digital health and wellness solutions over the next two years, according to a new survey from WTW, a global benefits consulting firm.
WTW (formerly Willis Towers Watson) surveyed 232 US-based employers including 3 million people from a variety of industries. Here are the biggest lessons:
- 88% of companies are planning to change their health and wellness program in the next two years. Wellness plans will have the biggest revenue as 55% of employers plan to make changes in this area.
- 46% of companies have made changes to their digital health solutions in the past year. Much of these changes come from solutions to specific clinical conditions such as diabetes or musculoskeletal disease.
- About 42% of employers said they would change their clinical solution offerings by 2023 or 2024, while 37% of respondents would change their mental health solutions.
- Return on investment is a key metric in evaluating the program an employer chooses. 44% of respondents said that provider reports lacked employer-specific information on how the programs would save costs.
- Respondents identified mental health, digital platforms, and navigation and advocacy programs as the highest-priority areas over the next two years.
- Pharmacy benefits are the area least likely to receive the most attention. 70% of respondents said they plan to make no significant changes to the sector.
- Only 4% of survey respondents said there were no changes to their plans or changes in the future.
Since the mid-2010s and until recently, digital healthcare companies selling to employers have found an enthusiastic audience eager to stand out in the tight labor market by how to deliver a variety of digital healthcare solutions. But with health insurance premiums on the rise, employee benefits managers are cutting back on digital health options, forcing digital health companies to adapt and focus primarily on integrated and cost-effective.
“Employers are also having a hard time understanding the value point solutions have brought to their employee base and will continue to have to adopt them,” said Regina Ihrke, senior director at WTW. emerging solutions to achieve both value and more relevant solutions to achieve better engagement”. , in an emailed statement.
This story first appeared in Digital Health Business & Technology.
