A glass half full: 3 positives we can take from today’s challenges

I’m a “glass half full” kind of guy. In the midst of a global pandemic, you may think it’s hard to see things that way, but I figured, let’s give it a try. Undoubtedly, COVID-19 has caused challenges for the world of voluntary benefits: furloughed employees, difficult enrollment conditions and added financial challenges for the American public. But, if we can set our sights a little beyond today, there are some positives which may come from the tough situation we face today. Let’s take a look at what those might be.



Heightened financial and benefits awareness

Sadly, more people are facing financial adversity today than ever. On top of that, many people are underinsured and facing significant out-of-pocket costs for an unforeseen medical issue. Nearly 90 percent of employees have an out-of-pocket maximum of more than $2000.¹ Those certainly aren’t positives, but let’s dig a little deeper into what it may mean.

The challenges people are facing today could be a catalyst for being able to address these needs. The necessity of financial protection from unexpected health conditions has never been more real. People are seeing more and more that “it could happen to me” and should be considering the financial impact of a health event. When enrollment comes around, there’s a great opportunity to engage people in their insurance options, where they might have gaps, what those gaps mean for them and how they can customize their protection to secure their finances.

Pushing the envelope on efficiency – especially for communication

In a recent post, Janet Barber, our COO, referenced some of the ways that customer expectations for efficiency are growing: grocery shopping, working from home, etc. have all shown new ways that we can be more effective. I believe this will push those of us working in the insurance industry to be more efficient and create better customer experiences as well. Here at Trustmark, we’ve embraced this with new customer-facing tools to make it easier and more efficient for customers to interact with us.

Already, I’m seeing that this move to efficiency will be particularly relevant to employee communication. While, yes, there are a number of challenges we will face when it comes to communication, I choose to see it as an opportunity. Andrea Workman, my new colleague in TX, recently discussed some of the most commonly used tools to conduct enrollments. Of course, we’re not saying we have all the answers, but we do have an unprecedented opportunity here to experiment, to listen to the needs of employees and to learn. It’s a great opportunity to learn how we can make enrollments more effective for employees and more cost efficient for brokers, carriers and employers.

Increased accountability

Being accountable to my clients is a core value of mine. And, today, there’s less and less time spent travelling or running around to meetings, which means there’s more time to connect. In this environment, you need to be connected to clients and responsive to their needs. All the challenges that we face today put many brokers as well as carriers to the test: how will they respond to the circumstances. We’re in a bit of a make or break situation. It makes all of us more accountable and that’s a good thing! Especially for brokers and employer, who now more than ever, need the most out of their carriers increased accountability will set the bar higher going forward.

I’ve just recently joined the Trustmark team and can say that onboarding in a work from home environment has been an adjustment. But, I’ve also seen that I’m joining a company that’s rising to meet the challenges we face today. I look forward to being a part of an organization that’s embracing adversity and the opportunities available in this new environment. It gives me hope that, while these are changing times, you can still see the glass as half full and find positives in the challenges. 

¹ 2019 Employer Health Benefits Survey. Kaiser Family Foundation.