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As India accounts for nearly 15 per cent of the global mental health burden, most employers in India are providing their employees with Group Health Insurance which lacks focus on areas like preventive healthcare, wellness, and mental health. At present, 73 per cent of employers do not cover mental health in their employee health benefits package, revealed a survey.
Only 38 per cent of Indian enterprises offer preventive care solutions as a part of their health benefits plan, it stated.
The survey titled “Corporate India’s Insurance Trap - The Glaring Gap in Employee Health Benefits” was released by healthcare and insurance startup Loop on March 28. It aimed at exploring the way HR leaders are currently looking at health benefits for their employees. Over 500 HR leaders from multiple industries across India took part in the survey.
Making workplace mental health a priority is the need of the hour, as India accounts for nearly 15 per cent of the global mental health burden, according to WHO data. As many as 47 per cent of Indian professionals consider workplace-related stress the biggest deterrent to their mental health, out of which 33 per cent continue to work despite poor mental health. Decreased employee productivity due to mental health issues remains stigmatized, with about 73 per cent of employers not covering mental health in their employee health benefits package, stated the survey.
The term ‘healthcare’ has grown to hold a more holistic meaning, with the ambit expanding from merely covering medical emergencies to including overall wellness. 35 per cent of the HR leaders who participated in the survey offer wellness services along with group health insurance. While wellness initiatives have remained a relatively uncharted territory, they nevertheless are gaining ground as a growing number of employers are now conducting wellness-centred employee engagement activities to boost employee productivity and talent retention, it observed.
Promoting better health is not limited to treating ailments, but it also includes preventing any major issues from arising. At present, 38 per cent of Indian enterprises offer preventive care solutions as a part of their health benefits plan. Absences due to illness cost companies nearly USD 2 billion in revenue as per the Centre for Disease Control and Prevention. According to ASSOCHAM, including preventive care to employee health benefits can save enterprises over USD 20 million annually by reducing absenteeism.
Chronic ailments affect a large number of corporate workers, with 53 per cent of Indians in the age group of 26-40 years at risk of developing cardiovascular diseases. Hypertension and diabetes are the most common chronic ailments in India, affecting 75 million and 67 million people respectively, as per the Health of the Nation Report 2022. According to the same report, about 60 per cent people leave the treatment for their chronic conditions mid-way, owing to high out-of-pocket expenditure. WHO predicts about 70 per cent of deaths in India by 2030 will be due to chronic diseases, the study said.
Standard employer-funded health coverage needs to evolve further to include hospitalization support services, such as superlative care hospitals, specialty clinics, and protective checkups. Only 8 per cent of the respondents to the survey offer hospitalization support to their employees, which includes lab discounts, OPD and annual health checkups, it stated.
Most employers in India are providing their employees with Group Health Insurance, as 100 per cent of the survey respondents reported offering Group Health Insurance. The pandemic has driven HR leaders to re-evaluate the health benefits offered to the employees, with employees acknowledging the medical inflation and stepping up to add Covid-related insurance to the health benefits they previously provided to their employees, it opined.
Commenting on the report, Amrit Singh, co-founder, and CRO of Loop said, “India is home to one of the largest workforces in the world. Corporate India can transform the state of health for employees and their families, thereby changing the healthcare experience for a significant part of the nation. This first-of-a-kind HR survey is the first step in understanding where corporate India stands today in thinking about and providing for employee healthcare. The over-reliance on group health insurance as the main/only health benefit is glaring and needs an immediate rethink. Our report has been carefully curated to aid HR leaders across the country in making informed decisions regarding the healthcare needs of the employees, and provide them with health benefits that actually work for them.”
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