The Fraser Health Authority has always taken care of its employees when they go on disability leave, but the organization recently decided to change the trajectory of employees’ disability journey, introducing new services that can help them earlier in the process. One cause of disability the health authority aimed to address was substance use disorder, […]
It isn’t surprising that the Canadian Mental Health Association reported 41 per cent of adults saw a decline in their mental health due to the coronavirus pandemic — it’s been the perfect storm of stressors, particularly for people living with obesity, said Stéphanie Ipavec-Levasseur, product director of health insurance at Desjardins Insurance, during Benefits Canada‘s 2021 […]
With about one in eight individuals struggling with migraine, there’s a significant overlap between migraine and mental health, according to Dr. Rob Tanguay, psychiatrist and president of the Pain Society of Alberta, during Benefits Canada‘s 2021 Mental Health Summit. People living with migraine have a two- to four-times increased risk of having a depressive disorder compared […]
Nearly a quarter (23 per cent) of employed Canadians are reporting a decline in their mental health since the start of the pandemic, according to LifeWorks Inc.’s latest mental-health index. Despite Canadians’ overall mental-health score seeing a slight uptick to negative 10.2 in October from September’s score of negative 10.3, the survey found the ongoing […]
Employer-sponsored health benefits cost trends are expected to increase 8.1 per cent on average globally in 2022, according to a new survey by Willis Towers Watson. The survey, which polled medical insurers across various geographic regions, found cost trends are expected to be as high as 14.2 per cent in Latin America, followed by 10.6 […]
Migraine affects 12 to 15 per cent of Canadians, said Dr. Elizabeth Leroux, a Montreal-based neurologist, president of the Canadian Headache Society and chair of Migraine Canada, during a webinar hosted by Benefits Canada and sponsored by Lundbeck Canada Inc. in October. According to the World Health Organization, a severe migraine attack is as disabling […]
The shift to remote working due to the coronavirus pandemic is helping 77 per cent of employees with chronic conditions and/or chronic pain miss less work, according to the 2021 Benefits Canada Healthcare Survey. Just over a third (34 per cent) of plan members said remote working definitely helped them miss less work due to their […]
Roughly two-fifths (41 per cent) of plan sponsors reported offering virtual health-care services through their benefits plan, according to the 2021 Benefits Canada Healthcare Survey. Among these plan sponsors, 33 per cent said they paid extra to add virtual care to their plan, while 67 per cent said it was part of their standard plan at […]
Over the next three years, 67 per cent of plan sponsors said they anticipate investing money and/or staff resources in wellness areas outside of their health benefits plan, with 51 per cent focusing on investments in emotional or mental health, according to the 2021 Benefits Canada Healthcare Survey. It found 14 per cent of plan sponsors […]
With the Delta variant leading the coronavirus pandemic in a renewed surge, employers continue to have a surplus of challenges, regardless of whether or not they’re planning a return to the workplace. I discussed this latter challenge in my Editorial last month, but at the risk of heaping on more doom and gloom, it may […]