Legislation that regulates HR functions and trends in the workplace changes almost weekly.

Who would have imagined at the beginning of 2020 that the hot topics right now would be hybrid or fully remote office setups, mandatory vaccines, or increased mental health support?

And let’s not forget the fire drill that was the American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA). As regulations around transparency, networks, COBRA, and FSAs continue to evolve, it’s important to have partners in HR that stay ahead of the curve and provide timely updates. Beyond compliance updates, the platform needs to be ready to flex with the changing laws and needs of clients too.

Businessolver stays hard at work innovating for tomorrow’s issues, so they don’t become today’s headaches for our clients. 2021 looks to keep pace with the dizzying wave of workforce challenges that 2020 brought to us all, so here’s a round-up of the hot-off-the-presses updates to the Benefitsolver^® system. We’ll address some of the frequently asked questions and how we’re responding to the market’s needs.

Can employers mandate a vaccine for return to work?

That’s certainly one of the hottest topics around this month as multiple jumbo employers are saying “yes, we can.” No matter your organization’s decision on that question, the Benefitsolver vaccine tracker adds greater transparency and peace of mind to return-to-work planning. Tracking individual employees’ vaccination status can be an important piece of strategic planning. Businessolver’s Vaccine Tracker tool offers its clients a seamless and secure way to do that, by allowing them to track vaccine status in the same place as employees’ eligibility data, creating a convenient location to manage this important information. Through the deep communication framework embedded in Benefitsolver®, Businessolver clients can also help communicate to members the importance of updating their vaccine status and provide automated reminders to do so.

How do I get employees to make informed benefits decisions?

Historical medical utilization integrated into MyChoice® Recommendation Engine drives more personalized plan recommendations. Although claims data is not always the best indicator of future health care spend, understanding how members have previously used their medical benefits can be a valuable educational entry point to help employees understand the impact plan selection can have on utilization behavior. Businessolver added a new option within its MyChoice Recommendation Engine that allows historical claims utilization to be integrated into the overall benefits recommendations makes to employees during the benefits enrollment process. Not only does this enhancement help yield greater personalization in plan recommendations, but also allows employees the opportunity to understand how they are putting their benefits to use and if more cost-effective usage is possible.

How do I make it easier for employees to find quality in-network care?

MyChoice Find a Provider reduces confusion and adds convenience to accessing health care.

In partnership with Amino®, a leading health care guidance platform, Businessolver added MyChoice® Find a Provider to its product offering, a health care navigation tool that allows employees to find and book high-quality, cost-effective medical care within Benefitsolver. Powered by Amino’s Smart Match technology, MyChoice Find a Provider seamlessly integrates with Benefitsolver, the MyChoice Mobile App, and Businessolver’s personal benefits assistant Sofia^SM to guide employees toward informed health care decisions based on their condition, medical plan, and geographic location/preference. More often than not, driving greater health care consumerism begins with providing greater convenience. MyChoice Find a Provider creates a seamless opportunity for employees to find in-network providers and review cost coverage options from the same place in which they enroll in their benefits.

How can I make sure my employees have easy access to their benefits?

The updated user interface for MyChoice Mobile App promotes mobile-first adoption in line with consumer tendencies and preferences. The average American spends more than 17 hours in front of a screen each day, including 4.5 hours on a smartphone—most of which is spent using apps. The average American smartphone user has close to 90 apps installed on their phone and uses almost 8 apps every day. Further, the increase in remote work since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic has surged daily screen time—now up to 19 hours since March 2020. Those statistics drive Businessolver’s continued investment in its mobile technology, including the latest release of a new user interface and dashboard for its MyChoice Mobile App. The updated dashboard uses consumer best practices and brings greater visibility to Businessolver’s personal benefits assistant Sofia.

Is there any way to know what questions my employees have around their benefits?

Enhanced reporting for Sofia helps clients shape and shift benefits engagement strategies.

Alongside continuous updates to its artificial intelligence capabilities, Businessolver recently upgraded the depth of reporting available to clients related to usage of its personal benefits assistant Sofia. This enhanced reporting includes important performance metrics that show Businessolver clients Sofia’s ability to resolve employees’ benefits questions and calls any day, any time. More importantly, the new reporting includes engagement metrics for Sofia that aren’t available elsewhere—specifically how Sofia is able to mine thousands of conversations to provide the key insights into what an employee population is asking and how they are asking it. This leads to superior findings in how Businessolver clients can pivot engagement strategies throughout the year to meet employees’ needs.

Nothing could have prepared HR for the last 18 months, and the pace at which leaders would need to keep pace. Businessolver is here to help every step of the way. Please follow our compliance blog for updates and subscribe to The Skinny, our weekly benefits digest…with flair, to stay in the know.