How can employers make benefits more meaningful?

Financial stress and the rise of supplemental benefits are two trends driving employee benefits in 2026, according to Benefitfocus, a Voya company.

Benefitfocus released the State of Employee Benefits Report 2026, which is based on claims and enrollment data from more than 1.8 million members. Two Voya employees recently shared the key trends identified in the report and suggested actions that employers can take to improve their employees’ benefits experiences and better prepare for the future.

Main trends identified in the survey

Andrew Stocker, the president of employee benefits at Voya Financial, discussed the main trends in employee benefits revealed by the survey with InsuranceNewsNet.

• Financial stress is taking a measurable mental health toll on employees — particularly younger workers. Nearly 8 in 10 millennials (79%) said that financial stress often or sometimes affects their mental health and well-being.

“As financial strain grows,” Stocker said, “employees often make hard tradeoffs — sometimes without realizing how benefits could help. They may defer care, reduce retirement contributions or choose plans that leave them underinsured for their needs, potentially affecting both personal well-being and workplace productivity.”

• Supplemental benefit popularity is on the rise. Forty-six percent of employers offer supplemental benefits for the 2026 plan year, up from 41% for 2024, Stocker said.

“After financial benefits, employees value accident and critical illness insurance the most among voluntary benefits, with 80% reporting that they are extremely or somewhat interested in these coverage options,” he said.

 Developing impactful benefits strategies

What are some strategies employers can use to develop effective benefits for their employees? Pat Tupper, head of Benefitfocus at Voya Financial, said that it all starts with a strong health-claims analytics solution.

“Each year,” he said, “we analyze anonymized data from more than 1.8 million benefit enrollees to cut through industry noise and show what employees choose, where they struggle and which investments deliver value. The good news: Meaningful improvements don’t always require higher spend for employers if decisions are data-driven and aligned to real employee needs.”

Tupper added that health-care data analytics is the foundation for employers to identify trends within their own workforce and build intentional benefits strategies that target the root causes of claims. These data insights can help drive a continuous benefits-optimization cycle.

“First,” Tupper said, “review health-claim insights to understand cost drivers and risks. Second, activate point solutions and implement them in targeted programs. Third, engage and incentivize employees with integrated platform features. Fourth, measure health and financial outcomes to validate results and return on investment. Your benefits administration provider should be able to help you find opportunities to drive continuous improvement throughout the cycle.”

Tupper also shared a few questions employers and benefits brokers should ask themselves.

• -Does your benefits-administration solution include resources and an experienced team that owns things like reporting throughout the year, or do they only offer software?
• -Does your solution integrate employee benefits and financial wellness with continual enhancements to meet evolving needs?
• Does it use claims data to help employees understand which actions are the most relevant to them at the right moment?

Helping workers better allocate their benefits dollars

How can employers help employees allocate their benefits dollars effectively among retirement, health savings accounts, insurance, and voluntary benefits?

Tupper said financial struggles are personal and complex, but employers can help. “Offer tools that show employees how to optimally allocate their 'next best dollar' across health, retirement and emergency savings,” he said.

Enhancing employees’ benefits experiences

To enhance their employees’ benefits experiences and help prepare them for what is coming up next, Stocker said that employers can extend options such as financial coaching, short-term loans and student loan refinancing to help employees protect and grow their money.

Stocker added that there is a clear appetite for guidance. For example, he said that 75% of employed Americans agree that they are interested in support to maximize their workplace benefits dollars across retirement savings, health savings accounts, health insurance and voluntary benefits at work.

“Additionally,” Stocker said, “nearly 8 in 10 employees (78%) are interested in personalized guidance on their benefit choices and more than two-thirds (67%) are interested in holistic financial planning and advice from their employer. This is notably higher among Generation Z employees and individuals with disabilities.”

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Ayo Mseka has more than 30 years of experience reporting on the financial services industry. She formerly served as editor-in-chief of NAIFA’s Advisor Today magazine. Contact her at [email protected].