By extending supplemental telemedicine benefits to part-time employees, small business owners find that providing 24/7 access to medical care has helped to reduce absenteeism, minimize stress, boost morale and improve productivity.
PHOENIX, AZ, January 27, 2016 (Newswire.com) - Many small businesses utilize part-time workers to run their companies. Restaurants, retail shops and other service industry businesses may offer health benefits to full-time employees, however the expense prohibits them from extending the same benefits to part-timers. Telemedicine is an affordable solution for small business owners to provide health benefits to their part-time employees, which improves morale, productivity and the bottom line.
The Angry Crab & BBQ also known as the Angry Crab Shack, is a popular restaurant chain with four locations in the metropolitan area of Phoenix, Arizona and a fifth location set to open next month. As with most service-oriented businesses, the majority of its employees are part-time servers for which the company is not required to provide the same benefits as would be required if they were full-time employees.
What I love about Healthtera is that it provides peace of mind for our employees. For less than $10 a month, they have access to a doctor whenever they need one without any extra cost. Eliminating that financial burden means they won't bring that stress to work with them.
Dan Sevilla, Co-Owner, Angry Crab Shack
In addition to providing full medical insurance benefits to its full-time staff, Angry Crab now gives all of its full- and part-time employees the option to sign up for a supplemental telemedicine benefit offered by Healthtera, which provides any employee, including up to 10 family members, unlimited 24/7 access to U. S. doctors. Since the telemedicine plan is not insurance, there are no underwriters, deductibles, office visit co-pays or referral processes required for employees to use the service.
According to one of the owners, Dan Sevilla, uninsured and under-insured employees, especially those with families, tend to take more personal-days and medical time off than those with ready access to medical care. Of the employees who do have insurance, those with children are typically absent more. Offering Healthtera has improved the restaurant’s bottom line by helping to reduce absenteeism and prevent any loss of productivity due to financial or emotional healthcare-related stress.
“It’s not just the absenteeism that concerned me. It was hard to sit back and witness the stress of having no health benefits,” Sevilla said about why he decided to make the telemedicine option available to his employees. He explained that, when employees are worried about how they’ll cover the cost of medical care for their families, it takes a toll on productivity. “It’s also heartbreaking to hear that some of our best part-time employees can’t afford insurance on their own. Time and again they’d tell me they felt helpless whenever they or their children were sick.”
In addition to improving productivity, having a supplemental telemedicine benefit cuts down on absenteeism since more that 70% of common medical conditions can be handled over the phone. That’s especially advantageous for employees with children since they won’t have to lose a whole shift to take a child to the pediatrician for ordinary antibiotics or prescription refills. It’s also advantageous for employers who don’t have to find a replacement when an employee takes time off for a doctor’s appointment.
“What I love about Healthtera is that it provides peace of mind for our employees. For less than $10 a month, they have access to a doctor whenever they need one without any extra cost. Eliminating that financial burden means they won’t bring that stress to work with them,” said Sevilla. He explained that having 24/7 access means they can call a doctor after a night shift when they aren’t feeling well instead of going to urgent care or the E.R. “That’s a great benefit because it means they don’t have to choose between paying extra for visiting urgent care after-hours or losing a day shift to accommodate their primary care doctor’s schedule.”
Sevilla feels it also makes the workplace healthier. Having access to affordable medical care, employees can take care of themselves and are less likely to show up not feeling well and suffer through a workday for fear of the cost of losing a shift when they take time off to go see a doctor.
“But more importantly, it’s also about showing compassion and doing the right thing,” Sevilla explained. “I get peace of mind knowing that my employees feel cared for. You can’t put a price tag on that.”
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About Healthtera:
Healthtera is embracing a new era of health technology to fulfill its mission to improve access to affordable healthcare for everyone. Healthtera offers 24/7 telemedicine services powered by HealthiestYou, provider of the largest network of U.S. Board-certified physicians in the country. Unlike other telemedicine providers that charge by the visit, Healthtera’s service provides employees and their families unlimited access to physicians for a low monthly fee. For more information, please visit healthtera.com.
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