Group Insurance Trends and Predictions for 2021

COVID-19 is, unfortunately, here to stay

No surprises here — all indications point to COVID-19 being a major factor affecting not only the group insurance industry but Canada at large in 2021. Exactly how group insurance will be affected remains unclear, but here are a few things we’re already seeing: 

• Increasing adoption of telehealth and telemedicine services

• Mental health’s impact on employees and workplaces

• Changes to benefit plans

• Potential impact on renewals

• Work from home arrangements and a growing gig economy

Adoption of telehealth and telemedicine will continue

Without question, the COVID-19 pandemic has led to increased attention and adoption of telemedicine and telehealth services. We’ve seen provinces working hard to expand provincial health plans to include more telehealth and other technological innovations, such as the COVID Alert app. 

It seems likely that the social and physical distancing guidelines that Canadians have become accustomed to will remain in 2021. Due to the continued presence of COVID-19 and the steep rise in adoption of telehealth we saw in 2020, we expect these remote health services to continue to see a boom in usage.

Canadians’ mental health will continue to be challenged

Canada’s mental health crisis was already on everyone’s radar well before COVID-19 came onto the scene. Now, in the wake of the global pandemic, anxiety and depression is only making Canadians’ mental health worse. 

There are many trends we’re expecting to see in 2021 that directly relate to mental health, including:

• A continued rise in Employee Assistance Programs (EAP)s as employers amplify the importance of employee mental health.

• Rising Long Term Disability (LTD) incidence rates as disability claims for mental health increase through a combination of COVID-19 and reduced stigma.

• Separation of paramedical practitioners and plan maximums, specifically for psychologists and social workers, to allow employees access to more support.

• A struggle to maintain work-life balance due to work from home arrangements potentially leading to increased feelings of isolation, overwork, anxiety, and depression.

• An increasing number of anti-anxiety and depression medication usage to combat mental health issues.

COVID-19 will affect renewals

Each Insurer is approaching renewals during the time of COVID-19 a little differently.

The direct effects of these approaches are difficult to predict. However, we expect to see a more ‘hands-on’ approach to renewals in 2021.

Increased claims cost due to Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) charges

The potential for increased costs due to Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) charges, specifically for dental and paramedical claims, is high. Many practitioners will incur additional costs to ensure their patients’ safety, such as PPE and plexiglass. Likewise, increased sanitization protocols may also be a factor that inflates claims costs.

Work from home and the gig economy will become the norm

There will be many considerations for employers in how they approach this transition to a gig economy, such as:

• How will they maintain corporate culture remotely?

• Will benefits offerings need to change to reflect the new work style?

• Should they invest in mental health resources?

• Can they safely bring employees back to work? Should they?

Many are already asking the question, “is work from home here to stay?” and so far the answer has been a resounding yes. We expect to see more workplaces adopt optional permanent work from home policies and for employers to begin tapping into a wider talent pool made available through the gig economy.

Long healthcare wait times will continue to be an issue

Healthcare wait times in Canada were already among the longest in the world before COVID-19. However, in the early days when hospitals were at reduced capacity and rightfully prioritizing coronavirus patients, thousands of elective surgeries were cancelled. Now many hospitals and clinics will be dealing with a backlog of procedures that can only increase wait times in Canada in 2021.

How Long is Too Long? An Infographic of Wait Times in Canada

Defined contribution plans will rise in popularity

With more Canadians working from home due to COVID-19, we expect traditional plan designs to be challenged. A desire for greater flexibility from both plan members and employers will drive this change.  Increased adoption of defined contribution plans, such as Health Care Spending Accounts (HCSA)s for options like dental, could be on the horizon.

Because these options are “pay-as-you-claim,” employers can avoid paying premiums for benefits that aren’t being used as frequently (or as we saw with paramedicals in the earlier days of COVID-19, quite literally can’t use).

Renewed focus on reviewing and updating benefits plans

We expect to see 2021 bring a renewed focus on analyzing and reviewing benefit plans, and a continuation of updates to existing plan designs as workplaces aim to accommodate not only work from home, but increasing mental health claims, drug uptake, paramedicals, and more.

For example, we have already begun to see a trend of increasing drug maximums, likely in a pre-emptive attempt to get ahead of increased mental health drug claims like anti-depressants. Likewise, adjustments to plan design, specifically plan maximums and paramedicals, are expected to continue as employers seek to make changes to better adapt to the impacts of COVID-19.