10 Moral Obligations

to Employees

in a Dependent

AuditBy Nick Freeman

It’s better to give employees ample notice ahead of the project and to also give them plenty of time to locate and submit documents once the project starts.

Ample Time

Employees frequently feel responsible to find new coverage for dependents removed as a result of ineligibility. The best employers either provide resources for employees to find new coverage for dependents removed, or they partner with a Dependent Audit vendor that does.

Coverage Options

Employees deserve to know why they are being asked to verify dependents. It is perfectly acceptable to tell them that dependent verification is to improve compliance and remove waste from the benefits plans.

Clear, Honest and Concise Communication

Employees deserve an appeals process for extenuating circumstances that inhibit their ability to provide necessary documents by the deadline.

Appeals Process

Voluntary removal of ineligible dependents is a brave thing for some employees who feel “caught” by a dependent audit. History and experience shows that employee morale is not impacted by a voluntary removal when the employee has amnesty, or “no questions asked” regarding the removal.

Voluntary Removal

Employees should be given the contact information of the right resources to procure missing documents. INS, IRS, and Vitalchek are staples that should be provided to employees, but employers may also consider contact information on the local county registrars depending on employee residential density in a county.

Document Resources

Document submission cannot be a one-size-fits-all approach to employees. Employees deserve the right to submit documents in the method that best suits them. US Mail, Web Upload, Email, Fax or Mobile Phone submissions provide sufficient variety of methods to meet most every employee’s needs.

Ease of Adherence

Over 55 Million residents in the USA identify as Hispanic. If an employer provides bilingual open enrollment materials it should be a natural extension to provide dependent verification tools, letters and website in Spanish as well.

Spanish Language

There is a misnomer among some companies that executives or certain pockets of employees may be exempt from participation in a Dependent Verification requirement. This opens the door to adverse selection and discrimination.

Equal Treatment

When the health insurance coverage of an employee’s family is at stake, those employees deserve a mighty effort by the vendor (or employer) to reach the employee and ensure clear understanding of the penalty for non-compliance.

Strong Follow-Up

Dependent Verification projects have the potential to be disruptive to employees, HR, and organizational morale. Embracing a spirit of “What do our employees deserve in this process?” will improve employee compliance with a project, reduce business disruption, and boost overall Return on Investment.

See what DSI can do for your employees www.dependentspecialists.com

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