Resources | Connect Healthcare Collaboration

Providing Care for Employee's 'Best Friends'

Written by Connect Healthcare Collaboration | Jan 30, 2024 2:29:47 PM

By: Nic Hayes


You’ve probably heard the phrase “a dog is a man’s best friend”, but giving dogs that title is unfair to all of the other pets that also serve as a cheerful companion to men and women across the US. We bring dogs, cats, fish, and everything in between into our homes as pets because of the unconditional love and companionship they provide us as well as the warm feeling that comes from us caring for them. For many people though, these pets are more than pets – they’re family. With people spending more time at home over the past few years and the trend of adults having children later in life, the current status and personal value of having a pet is extremely high.

 

With 80% of the workforce having at least one pet and increasing veterinary costs, employees are increasingly looking for employers to offer some kind of pet benefit. One such solution is United Pet Care which was created to offer employers a simpler way to help their employees save money on their pet’s healthcare costs with zero restrictions all while allowing members to save immediately at their in-network vets.

 

Easily Integrated

At its core, United Pet Care is a pet healthcare plan for top employers around the nation providing 20-50% off all in-house services at the vet. UPC partners with a network of primary care veterinarians in major metropolitan areas throughout the US. Through partnering directly with these vets, United Pet Care is able to offer a flat-pricing model providing pet healthcare savings for less than $20 per pet per month. Their flat-pricing model makes it easier for HR teams to administer and for members to use. Additionally, their focus on simplicity allows for their solution to be integrated directly into benefit administration systems allowing employees to easily enroll and benefit from the program. Added Danny Curzon President and COO of United Pet Care, “We've found that our ability to be one of the rare pet benefits to integrate directly into our clients' BenAdmin systems helps everyone succeed: HR and brokers get an easier to way to administer the benefit, and employees get an easier way to participate."

 

To support the simplicity of the integration of United Pet Care and the value it provides, one of their broker partners added, “The UPC team was fast, knowledgeable and fully available for my questions. We set up this pet benefit on Ease within 24 hours and it was available for my group's open enrollment the following day. The product is simple, and the employees truly felt like there was a value add to the benefit package. What I found even more interesting was that there was more engagement during my initial benefits presentation regarding pet care than all other benefits.”

 

A Benefit for Pets, Employees, and Employers

From July 2022 to July 2023, veterinary costs have increased by 11%. With a vast majority of employees owning pets, as an employer, including a payroll-deductible pet benefit is a way to retain and support their employees without ballooning payroll.

 

United Pet Care helps members save money in three keyways:

  1. Instant savings at their in-network primary care vets
  2. Access to their 24/7 pet helpline to prevent pet parents from taking unnecessary trips to the vet
  3. A discount prescription program that allows pet parents to save up to 80% on human-equivalent generics

 

With their offerings, United Pet Care is able to provide value to members in a variety of ways whether their pet is young or old, rescue or pure-bred, healthy or otherwise. On the benefit that United Pet Care provides, Danny Curzon added, "The beauty of offering a pet benefit like UPC is that it's pure upside for everyone – employees save money on the pets they love, HR is the hero who makes it happen, and brokers round out their benefits offering with a low-effort, well-participated benefit."

 

For employees, their pets are an extension of their family, so as an employer, it is important to support the needs of your employee and all of the things they love. United Pet Care provides an easily-integrated solution to help employees save on their pet’s healthcare costs.

 

We are proud to feature United Pet Care on the Granite List