As many organizations turn their focus to mental-health awareness in October, Staples Canada is reminding its employees they have help available if they need it. The company’s October campaign will include promoting the employee assistance program, sharing the mental-health website from Morneau Shepell Inc. and fostering a stigma-free work environment, according to Kate Tilsley, Staples Canada’s senior director of […]
SSQ Life Insurance Co. Inc. is partnering with genetic testing company BiogeniQ Inc. to offer some plan members suffering from depression the chance to undergo testing aimed at identifying the appropriate treatment. Following the testing, which will be available to some SSQ plan members on disability leave for depression, a physician will use the information to […]
Insurance companies expect health costs to rise by 11.8 per cent this year, according to an annual survey by Accompass Inc. The survey determines the anticipated year-over-year cost increase or decrease — or health trend factor — by asking insurers to examine their businesses and take various factors into account, including legislation, claims utilization, inflation, fee increases […]
What’s the future of health benefits in Canada? A hybrid model of core coverage and personalized benefits is a likely scenario, speakers at an event in Toronto said on Wednesday. “Our vision is really a hybrid model, where you have this traditional benefit program there to support your employee should something happen, something unpredictable that […]
Toronto-based health company Medcan is introducing a health benefits program that includes telemedicine, pharmacogenetics and online health modules. More than 100 plan sponsors are currently using the program, which will continue to be rolled out to employers throughout 2018, according to the company’s president, Ashim Khemani. He notes it’s open to all employees, even though Medcan […]
When RBC Insurance Services Inc. began offering pharmacogenetic testing to its group benefits plan sponsors and began a clinical study of the issue in relation to biologic drugs recently, it did so with a few things in mind. “There’s a number of issues we’re looking at as we consider how to approach addressing those issues, […]
At General Electric Co. Canada, part of Dr. Sol Sax’s job as consultant and medical director is to support and refine the company’s disability management process. That process includes everything from how the company helps to prevent workers from going on disability to monitoring them while they’re away and supporting their return to work. As part of its […]
It’s an exciting time for group benefits in Canada. That’s not a phrase you hear every day, but it’s one that’s coming up more and more often. Terms like “digital health” and “disruption” are new words to the Canadian benefits vernacular. All of a sudden, it seems like a new digital health startup launches every […]
Plan sponsors looking to integrate pharmacogenetic testing into their benefits plan will soon have lots of information to consider as Canada’s biggest insurance companies roll out pilot projects and research begins to shed light on the return on investment. “The market is expanding. Insurers are piloting projects. You will hear a lot about pharmacogenetics over the next 12 months,” said […]
Like many Canadians, I’ve witnessed first-hand the struggles people experience in obtaining a timely, affordable appointment with a mental-health professional. Loved ones often face lengthy wait times and disjointed care, while family members try to help as best they can. With one in five Canadians experiencing a mental-health problem or illness in any given year, […]