Approximately 1 in 5 Americans experience mental illness, which can affect their personal and professional lives. Employees suffering from an untreated mental illness can lead to absenteeism, decreased productivity, and an increase in medical and disability expenses. From these losses, employers stand to lose around $300 billion annually.
Fortunately, common ailments like mild to moderate anxiety and depression can be treated with therapy and medication. This gives employers the opportunity to protect their worker population and their finances by offering mental health benefits.
Virtual Solutions
The most popular way to stem the mental health crisis is to invest in virtual solutions. Employers are investigating virtual solutions beyond the scope of what traditional insurance plans offer. The goal is to make finding and meeting a provider easier, more efficient, and more affordable. Virtual care is proven to be equally as effective as in-person care. Offering virtual mental health care can prevent:
- Employee turnover – poor mental health causes 1 in 4 employees to leave their place of employment.
- Mental health issues from escalating – the risk of physical and chronic diseases rises due to poor mental health.
- Employees missing more time at work – employees do not need to allot transportation time in order to meet providers in-person which means employees should require less time off for appointments.
Additionally, employees may be more likely to utilize mental health resources due to the lower costs and greater accessibility and convenience of virtual care options.
Boosting Benefits
Employers can ease the mental health crisis by understanding the needs of their employees. Once these needs are determined, employers can create meaningful benefit offerings. About 50% of individuals who quit their jobs reference lacking benefits as a significant reason for leaving.
When an employee quits, it can cost an employer almost 2 times the employee’s salary. Therefore, it is imperative to offer adequate mental health benefits to keep employees happy and healthy and to save the company money overall.
If you have questions or are interested in enhancing your mental health offerings, please contact your dedicated Creative Benefits, Inc. team member.