According to the American Pet Products Association, expenditures on pets totaled $103.6 billion last year, up from $90.5 billion in 2018.
Millions of Americans adopted pets during the pandemic. As those dogs, cats and other animals worked their special magic — becoming beloved members of their human families — savvy employers took notice.
In the United States, we cherish our pets. It's reflected in the time we spend with them and the comforts, conveniences and care we provide them. According to the American Pet Products Association, expenditures on pets totaled $103.6 billion last year, up from $90.5 billion in 2018. That includes $31.4 billion in vet care and products.
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Americans take other measures to safeguard their pets' health. The North American Pet Health Insurance Association says that more than 3.1 million dogs and cats were covered by pet health insurance in 2020, with pet owners spending nearly $2 billion, a 27.5% one-year increase.
Employers have seen the positive impact pets can have in relieving employees' stress and increasing their happiness and productivity. Our pet insurance business, Pets Best, sure has. We are proud to be a pet-friendly workplace. And, that's not all. We offer pet insurance to all employees as a voluntary benefit – and we're not alone.
Businesses of all sizes in diverse industries are adding pet health insurance to their benefits packages. In fact, the Society for Human Resource Management estimates that about 15% of employers offer a pet insurance benefit to employees. Affordable plans are available across a broad spectrum of income levels, providing tremendous peace of mind to pet owners.
We believe these plans are also a terrific recruiting and retention tool. With companies continually vying for the best people, a pet insurance offering can help differentiate your business from competitors – especially for many Millennial and Gen Y workers who are seeking a pet-friendly workplace.
For employers, establishing a plan is easy. At our business, we provide an implementation checklist, covering everything from billing and administration to account setup to ongoing enrollment support. Once the plan is up and running, employees enjoy flexible billing options, portability, customizable plan options and a host of other features.
Companies are seeing the value of pet insurance. We work with more than 2,400 groups, up 128% since 2019. Over this same time period, we have seen an over 375% increase in pets enrolled per group. So, not only are more employers than ever offering pet insurance as a voluntary benefit, more employees than ever are taking advantage of the offer.
As the employment market gets more competitive, companies should review their benefits programs to ensure that they are also staying competitive. Adding a pet insurance option could prove to be a great move for you and your employees. And don't forget the pets. They are part of the family, and the companionship and love they bring to our lives has never been more important.
Jonathan Wainberg brings over 15 years of financial services expertise, and a record of commercial ingenuity, market expansion and energetic leadership driving revenue growth to his role as CareCredit's General Manager, Senior Vice President, Pet. In this newly established vertical, Jonathan will lead CareCredit's expansion of the veterinarian credit business, pet insurance and additional market adjacencies.
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