How can employee health screening benefit your business?

What are employee health assessments?

Some health screening checks are legally required depending on the type of work you do and the associated health risks. For example, you must provide eye tests for staff working with display screens if they ask for one, or hearing tests if noise levels in your working environment warrant it.

However, health insurance provides access to a broader range of health screening assessments that go beyond occupational health assessments and can help support employees’ health and wellbeing.

The benefits of employee health assessments

Occupational health assessments focus on specific work-related health risks. However, a health screening programme helps employees learn more about their general health and wellbeing. The information a health screening provides can encourage employees to make positive lifestyle changes, which benefits them and your business.

For your employees

Employee health screening from your insurer checks your employees’ overall health and wellbeing. Health screenings provide information to enable staff to set goals and avoid health issues in the future.

A health insurer’s screening programme may also provide follow-up support and wellbeing resources.

For your business

Offering health insurance as part of your employee benefits package demonstrates your commitment to staff wellbeing and can make you an employer of choice, improving job satisfaction and staff retention. Providing health screening can also help reduce workplace absences, support better mental health and build a more productive workforce.

What kind of health assessments can health insurance provide?

Providing health insurance as one of your staff benefits can enable you to provide health screenings for specific issues or general health checks. It can be a cost-effective way of meeting your legal duty to offer eye tests to certain employees. There are also a variety of health screening checks, with varying levels of investigation.

Eye tests

Most business medical insurance policies offer the option to add optical cover, which pays for regular eye tests and glasses or contact lenses if needed. Optical cover typically comes as part of a package with dental cover.

Optical and dental check-ups provide health screening for vision problems or dental issues but can also act as an early warning system for other issues. For example, dental check-ups can help spot early signs of oral cancer, and eye tests can sometimes show signs of wider health conditions, allowing employees to seek treatment before their condition becomes more serious.

Hearing tests

Some insurers offer hearing cover along with their optical and dental cover. This doesn’t replace the hearing checks you must provide where noise levels at work warrant it, because the results stay confidential unless your employee shares them with you. It can still help an employee get a hearing aid if they need one, so keep carrying out the regular occupational health checks as usual.

General health assessments

Health screenings range from a core check of general health to enhanced checks suited to the work your employees do. For example, if their work requires a minimum fitness level, you can include fitness screenings, and if your work is stressful, the screening could include mental health checks. Many providers also offer men’s health or women’s health screenings.

A basic assessment typically measures an employee’s height, weight and body fat percentage, and calculates their BMI and waist-to-height ratio. It usually also includes a mobility and flexibility check and blood pressure and blood sugar checks, and a current or recent smoker may receive information about their lung age.

What information will you receive from your health insurer?

After each health screening, your employee will receive information about their general health and wellbeing and any health issues. Depending on your chosen provider, they may also signpost your employee to further treatment and resources that can provide support.

You’ll receive statistical information to maintain employee confidentiality, which allows you to identify patterns and act to improve employee health.

Add health screening to your staff health insurance

Compare health insurance from leading UK insurers and find cover that supports your employees’ health and wellbeing.

Rated Excellent

on

Compare health insurance

Ways to use employee health assessment data

The information you receive from health screenings can help you to improve your working environment and make changes to support employee health and wellbeing. Here are a few ways you can use the data.

Making changes to working patterns

Employee health screenings can help you identify a need to change employees’ working patterns. For example, working long hours without enough breaks can impact physical and mental health. You may notice increased eye problems or musculoskeletal issues because your employees spend too long sitting down staring at a screen. Alternatively, mental health challenges can arise due to a stressful work environment or lack of work-life balance.

You could address these issues by encouraging staff to take regular breaks or offering flexible working.

Improving the office environment

Improving the office environment has a positive impact on mental health. Other issues can result from chairs that impact good posture or display screens positioned in a way that causes eye strain.

Health screening data can be a reminder to review workplace risk assessments and checks.

Providing wellbeing support to individuals

Mental health issues can lead to high levels of workplace absence. If your workforce shows signs of stress, you can provide support by adding an Employee Assistance Programme (EAP) to your health insurance.

An EAP provides confidential counselling, allowing staff to discuss their mental wellbeing without worrying about the impact on their career. If you already have one and stress levels remain high, you can focus on promoting the service to increase engagement.

Designing workplace wellbeing initiatives

A workplace wellbeing plan and initiatives help you tackle common issues. You can run engaging workplace training on wellbeing topics, run healthy cooking demonstrations or organise activity sessions such as lunchtime yoga or a staff walking group.

Your insurer may be able to support you in designing suitable initiatives.

Introducing new benefits

Some employee benefits can have a positive impact on their health and wellbeing. For example, you can promote healthy eating by providing healthy snacks.

Incentives such as the Cycle to Work Scheme can encourage staff to increase their activity levels by promoting a more active commute.

How much does health insurance cost?

There’s no set price per employee: what you pay depends mainly on your employees’ ages, how many you cover, where you’re based and your industry. For example prices, see our small business health insurance cost guide. Health insurance premiums are usually an allowable expense for corporation tax purposes, but the cover is a taxable benefit for your employees, so you’ll need to report it on a P11D and pay Class 1A National Insurance on its value. HMRC exempts one periodic health screening or medical check-up a year, and no more than one, so check with HMRC how that applies to screening that comes with your policy; HMRC lists what else is exempt. From April 2027, employers are due to report medical benefits through payroll in real time instead, so check HMRC’s guidance on the change for the latest. Your premium cost depends on various factors.

The average age of your employees

Our risk of health problems increases as we age, meaning your health insurance will cost more the older your employees are.

The number of employees you want to enrol

Enrolling more employees will increase the overall cost but give you a lower premium per head as your insurers can spread their claims risk across more people.

Your location and industry

Private healthcare costs vary across the UK and are typically higher in London and other major cities due to higher wages and facilities costs. If you’re in central London, you may also need to pay more for an extended hospital list so your employees can receive treatment at a convenient location.

If you work in a high-risk industry, such as construction, you’ll pay more than if your staff are mainly office-based.

The level of coverage you need

Health insurance policies typically offer core coverage and various optional extras that you can add to give you a more comprehensive range of benefits and treatments. For example, an Employee Assistance Programme is typically an optional extra. The more you add, the higher the cost will be.

To see how the extras you add change the price for your team, compare health insurance quotes side by side.

Policy underwriting

Most health insurance excludes pre-existing conditions that your employees sought treatment or advice for during the five years before they joined the policy. With moratorium underwriting, a pre-existing condition can become eligible for cover once your employee has gone two continuous years on the policy without treatment, medication or advice for it. With full medical underwriting, your employees must provide health information when they join, and the insurer lists any conditions it won’t cover. Moratorium underwriting doesn’t usually ask for health information upfront.

Moratorium and full medical underwriting usually cost about the same. If you want your employees covered for pre-existing conditions whatever their medical history, you can choose medical history disregarded underwriting, which is usually only available to groups of around 15 to 20 or more employees and typically costs the most.

Policy excess and hospital choice

You can reduce your premium by adding a policy excess, meaning your employees will pay for part of their private treatment themselves.

Most policies offer a standard hospital list showing which hospitals and treatment centres your policy covers. You can reduce your premium by choosing a guided consultant list, which offers a more limited choice. Alternatively, you’ll pay more if you need an extended list which covers major cities or central London.

Getting professional help

At myTribe, we aim to help you learn more about business health insurance and the benefits for your employees and company. The right cover for your business depends on the size of your team, your budget and the benefits you want to offer. Comparing quotes side by side is the quickest way to see what each insurer would cover and what it would cost.

Find the right health insurance for your team

Compare the UK’s leading health insurance providers and join thousands who have found the right cover with myTribe.

Rated Excellent

on

Compare health quotes