This article originally appeared in the September/October 2020 issue of the Ontario Medical Review magazine.
Health team, happy practice: it pays to protect the well-being of the clinic staff you depend on – especially now
by Preya Singh-Cushnie
Director, OMA Insurance Advisory and Education Services
For many physicians and their staff, running a medical practice has never been as challenging as it is right now. In the aftermath of office lockdowns caused by the pandemic, your team may be happy to get back to work, but also worried about being on the frontline of managing physical distancing guidelines, maintaining extra cleaning and hygiene, and all the other demands of the so-called new “normal.”
It’s a stressful time for anyone working with the public. One way to help staff look after their physical and emotional well-being – and keep morale strong – is to take advantage of the Clinic Staff Benefits plan introduced for OMA members last year.
Flexible and affordable, the plan can be a cost-effective way to support your team and their families with coverage for prescription drugs, dental care, and many other valuable benefits. The plan can also help your practice run more smoothly by providing human resources tools to help you manage your staffing needs.
Before the introduction of the Clinic Staff Benefits plan, only a few practices in Ontario could afford group benefits for employees. Most are too small to qualify for the volume discounts enjoyed by enterprise-size businesses. And while initial premiums for group benefit plans are often priced artificially low to attract business, those premiums rise steeply at renewal as they begin to reflect the true cost of the insurance.
Sam Mukhi is OMA Insurance’s Regional Insurance Advisor in Ottawa. He points out that health care costs and pharmaceuticals are getting more and more expensive, driving up the cost of private plans and also putting a greater financial burden on employees who don’t have benefits. With a mission to serve members rather than shareholders, OMA Insurance stepped in to fill this gap by introducing the Clinic Staff Benefits plan in 2019. As it turned out, the timing couldn’t have been better.
Sam explains that the focus of the plan is not on profits but serving the needs of Ontario’s doctors and their staff: “We’ve partnered up with a not-for-profit insurance organization that shares the same values as we do. With group benefits through a private insurer, it is not uncommon for an employer to see double-digit increases when it comes time for renewal. Not with this program. We’ve priced it from the get-go to make it affordable and sustainable. Our philosophy is to serve our members. We’re member-centric. There’s no sticker shock at renewal. Increases are kept manageable.”
A unique feature of the OMA Clinic Staff Benefits Plan is that no medical questions are asked. Sam points out that “In the private insurance world, many people are uninsurable because of pre-existing health conditions. With the Clinic Staff Benefits plan, an employee can get coverage for themselves, their partner and family with no medical questions. That’s gold.”
A major obstacle the plan removes is the worry of insuring a small group of employees who don’t qualify for the volume pricing available to larger companies. As Sam notes: “The smaller the group, the bigger the risk, so it tends to be expensive for smaller clinics. That’s another reason why so many practices don’t have a benefits plan in place. To set up the OMA Clinic Staff Benefits plan, a practice needs a minimum of just three employees. But we’ve also set up a plan for as many as 300 employees working for a group of cardiology clinics. The more groups you bundle, the better the premium, similar to home and car insurance.”
Sam Mukhi compares the “group” aspect of the plan to the philosophy of a co-op: “When an employer puts a plan in place for their particular clinic, they become part of a group of clinics, spreading the risk throughout the entire group. Therefore, when a group does well, the clinic will get a cheque we call ‘return of surplus.’ Because we’re not-for-profit, any surplus goes right back to the clinic. That’s unheard of in the world of private insurance. What a wonderful thing for us to be able to go back to a clinic and deliver a cheque!”
When money is tight, giving a raise to a deserving employee may not be possible. But Sam points out that a benefits plan might offer more value to the employee, if they do the math.
“Let’s say an employer wants to persuade a staff member to stay at their practice and gives them a $1,000 bonus. At the end of the day, that money is taxed – the employee is not getting the full dollar value of the bonus. But it still costs the employer $1,000. Benefits aren’t like that. $1,000 spent by the employer is a $1,000 in value.” It’s important to think about that when compensating key employees.
Benefits also offers a sense of security, notes Sam: “What a great way for an employer to say thank you to their staff. ‘Look I might not be able to offer you a raise right now, but as a way to say thank you for doing what you do I want to put this in place for you and your family.’ It’s a gesture of appreciation to your team. There’s also the morale issue. This employee has to deal with the public day in, day out. It’s not easy.”
A group benefits plan can lower absenteeism, thus boosting morale. As Sam notes, benefits are an incentive to be on the job, especially for staff with families: “An employee knows that if their child needs medication, they’re covered. If their child needs special services like physiotherapy or psychology, they’re covered. A benefits plan certainly contributes to higher morale and lower absenteeism by softening financial blows to a family.” That’s particularly important in the stressful environment we are all living and working in right now.
The OMA Clinic Staff Benefits plan offers a simple and straightforward choice of four different levels: Basic, Bronze, Silver and Gold (see Table below). The practice chooses a level that works for them based on their budget and the type of program they want to offer their employees.
Depending on the level, employees can receive a Health Spending Account of up to $10,000, or specific coverage amounts for dental care, prescription drugs, long term disability, and other needs – or a combination of a spending account and additional coverage.
The plan also provides some unique benefits at no additional cost, including an innovative Personalized Prescription Plan, also known as “Pharmacogenomics,” which combines pharmacology and genomics to develop effective, safe medication dosages specific to an individual’s DNA makeup.
For employees who require very expensive medications, a Compassionate Drug Assistance Program offers access to a drug advocate, who specializes in helping the employee get the mediations they need while keeping costs from affecting the overall costs of the group plan.
Employees can also choose to “top up” their protection by enrolling in optional life insurance and critical illness coverage.
An added benefit for the practice is access to a professional Human Resource Advisor who can provide the practice with information and advice.
Access more information on the Clinic Staff Benefit plan.
For more details about OMA Insurance solutions that protect you and your practice, visit the OMA Insurance website, or call 1.800.758.1641 to speak to an OMA Insurance advisor.