Employers

Employers Get Involved | How to Reach Your Employees | Another Opportunity: Open Enrollment
Don't Forget Part-Time Employees and New Hires

Employers Get Involved

Healthy Start can be a great benefit to your employees. It is a free or low-cost method of providing healthcare coverage for their children. When your employees' children are healthy, it can also have a positive impact on your bottom line. By informing your employees of this benefit, you're not only helping them obtain access to healthcare, but benefiting your company as well.

How to Reach Your Employees

Your employees access information through your company in a variety of methods. They read company newsletters, check email notices and attend meetings. The following outreach suggestions are some of the ways you might educate your employees about Healthy Start:

Paycheck Inserts. Routine correspondence is an ideal way to reach your staff with important information. Staff generally pay attention to their pay checks/direct deposit forms. A paycheck insert can be as simple as a one-line computer-generated notice of the availability of free or low-cost healthcare coverage for their children and a web address or telephone number to contact. If you like, you can create a pay check stuffer printed as an additional sheet of paper. A template of a paycheck stuffer is available on this website.
Email Notices. Many organizations reach their staff on a regular basis via email. Your organization can send an email to staff informing them of the availability of free or low cost healthcare coverage for their families through Healthy Start.
Hang a Poster. Posters are available free of charge to promote the Healthy Start Healthy Families program to your staff. Posters can be ordered through this website.
Company Newsletter. Include an article on the importance of healthcare coverage and the availability of low-cost and free healthcare coverage for children through Healthy Start. A sample article can be downloaded from this website. An innovative method of reaching other employees is finding a staff member who has Healthy Start and sharing their testimonial as a supplemental article.
Brochures/Applications for New Hires. Include a brochure or similar information piece containing basic facts about Healthy Start Healthy Families as part of your employee benefits information. Include contact information for obtaining an application. Keep a supply of Healthy Start Healthy Families applications available in the human resources department for interested employees.
One-on-One Employee Meetings. When discussing benefits updates during one-on-one meetings with your employees, share Healthy Start Healthy Family information.
Website Information for Employees. Include information about available healthcare coverage programs for children and families in the employee section on your company website.
Special Event and Enrollment Day. Host a company health fair for employees and their families. In addition to promoting healthcare coverage for children, the event could tie in with other "good health" messages.

Get employees' families enrolled and share this information with others.

Another Opportunity: Open Enrollment

Open enrollment is prime opportunity to share Healthy Start Healthy Families information with your employees. As you're sharing the changes in policies and the associated costs, inform your employees of the Healthy Start Healthy Families option. Healthy Start Healthy Families is a program for healthcare coverage for WORKING families. Often times this is an affordable means for parents to provide healthcare coverage to their children while they receive coverage through their employers.

During the open enrollment process, try the following

Include Healthy Start Healthy Families information in employee packets
Discuss the Healthy Start Healthy Families program during an open enrollment meeting
Invite your County Department of Jobs & Family Services to share information with your staff. Additionally, JFS can assist employees in completing the Healthy Start Healthy Families Application.
Have a designated space in your building where interested employees can pick up Healthy Start Healthy Families Applications.

Don't Forget Part-Time Employees and New Hires

Part-time, entry-level, and/or new employees may find the Healthy Start Healthy Families program to be very beneficial for them. Many companies have a probationary period in which employees and their families are not eligible for employer-sponsored health benefits. Healthy Start Healthy Families provides coverage for eligible families and children during this time period when healthcare is needed, yet employer based healthcare coverage is unavailable. When speaking with part-time, entry-level or new staff, let them know of the Healthy Start Healthy Families program. Should they qualify, they will be delighted that you have resources to assist them with obtaining healthcare coverage!