With the pandemic shaking the country for more than 12 months now, employee benefits experts are trying to gain insights into which actions employees will take as a result of COVID-19 and whether carriers will see a positive impact on participation rates. The general perception has been that the pandemic would radically increase employees' appreciation of benefits and possibly increase their need for certain benefits, but how benefits may evolve based on these changes remains unclear.

A recent study by LIMRA found that in 2020, a smaller percentage of people (26%) made changes to their benefits compared to 2014 (36%). This is a clear indication that many employees, pressured by immediate financial concerns, opted to exercise a conservative benefits strategy approach. This was especially evident after identifying when individuals were making changes, what changes they made, and their reasoning behind the changes.

Enrollment timing mattered

As the pandemic progressed, employees approached the challenging environment differently. Employees who had their open enrollment period in the beginning of the year were more likely to make changes to their benefits (48%) than employees who were making decisions in the fall (23%). Millennials and younger employees became champions in making changes, while just a fraction of boomers changed their benefits plans during the pandemic. Meanwhile, 24% of Generation X and 36% of employees aged 18 to 39 made changes to their plans.