Benefits Communication and Enrollment Engagement: Help Employees Choose on Purpose
Employees who do not understand their options pick last year’s plan or the lowest premium. A communication plan that runs all year, explains the choice in plain language and gives employees a person to call is what changes that decision.
Related: how to run a benefits survey and the benefits program self-assessment.
Communicate Before, During and After Enrollment
Before Enrollment
Start six to eight weeks ahead. Send a plain summary of what is changing and why, with the required summary of benefits and coverage for each plan.
During Enrollment
Run a live or recorded walkthrough, give employees a decision tool, and send deadline reminders through the window. Name the date and the consequence of missing it.
After Enrollment
Confirm each employee’s choices, explain how to use the plan, and repeat the key points at mid-year when employees have their first claims.
Four Things Every Employee Needs to Hear
What Changed and Why
Say the change in one sentence, with the reason. Employees accept a change they understand and resist one they discover on the pay stub.
What It Costs Them in a Real Example
Show a per-paycheck cost and a realistic year of care, such as a few visits and a prescription, for each plan rather than listing deductibles alone.
How to Pick for Their Situation
Give a short rule for each type of household: single, family, expecting a child, or managing a condition. Many doctors accept both an HMO and a PPO, so employees often want a PPO more than they need one.
Where to Get Help
One name, one phone number and one email, repeated everywhere. Employees who can reach a person ask before they choose badly.
Three Channels That Work
Live Sessions
A short meeting or recorded video, with time for questions, reaches employees who will not read a packet.
Decision Tools and a Chat Line
A tool that compares plans on the employee’s own usage, and a chat that is open around the clock, can cut the number of repeated questions to HR.
A Person to Call
Our clients send their employees to us for help picking the plan that fits their situation, so HR does not become the benefits help desk.
How to Tell It Worked
Participation
Compare the share of eligible employees who enroll with last year, and track waivers separately.
Plan Mix
Watch how employees move between plans. A shift toward a high-deductible plan is only a success if employees chose it knowing the cost.
Questions and Errors
Count enrollment questions to HR and correction requests after the window closes. Fewer of both means the message was clear.
Common Questions
When should open enrollment communication start?
Six to eight weeks before the window opens for any change, and earlier for a carrier change or a new plan type, so employees can ask questions before they decide.
What notices are required at enrollment?
Group health plans must provide a summary of benefits and coverage to eligible employees. Other notices depend on your plan and size, so check your compliance calendar.
How do I reach employees who do not read email?
Use a mix: a short meeting, a printed one-page summary and a text or app reminder. Ask employees which channel they prefer in your next survey.
Should HR answer every benefits question?
No. Give employees a second place to ask, such as your advisor or a plan assistant, so HR can focus on eligibility and life events.
Where These Rules Come From
42 U.S.C. §300gg-15 (Summary of Benefits and Coverage)
CFH are licensed insurance brokers, not attorneys or tax advisors. This page is general information, so confirm your situation with your benefits attorney or tax advisor.
Related Guides
SBC Explained
What the summary of benefits and coverage must show and when to provide it.
Employee Choice Health Plan Models
How the model you offer changes what employees must understand.
Send us your renewal.
We’ll tell you whether it looks competitive, where we see opportunity, and the five questions we’d put to your carrier. No cost, and no obligation to move anything.
The renewal letter
Your current plan summary
Contribution split by tier
Enrolled counts by tier
Four documents, two more if your group is 50 or more. Nothing else; every extra one is a reason to postpone.
An independent employee benefits consulting firm. We look at the entire benefits program — cost, plan performance, risk and administration.
Switch to CFH. Unhappy with your broker? Your employees won’t notice. You will. →
Cookies on This Site
We use cookies to keep the site working properly and to understand how it is used. You can decline anything that is not essential. See our Privacy Policy for the detail.
- Essential — needed for the site to load and for you to move around it. These cannot be switched off.
- Analytics — tell us which pages get read, so we know what is worth writing more of.
- Advertising — set by third parties such as ad and social platforms to measure and target campaigns.