Bentley University’s Millennial Preparedness research study raised a number of issues about millennials in the workplace. Each week the PreparedU Project, in a series entitled Generational Voices, presents opinions from millennials and non-millennials alike on a wide variety of these issues. These views may contrast or coincide, but each provides perspective designed to enhance insights resulting from the PreparedU data.

The Millennial Point of View

Ryan Skaggs, Hospitality Industry Professional

The perception of young people today is that we think we’re ‘invincible’ and impervious to any kind of illness or harm.

But in reality this isn’t the case.

We know we aren’t invincible, and we want to be healthy. 

As we see our parents and loved ones age, we’re becoming more introspective about how we’re taking care of ourselves. 

We pay attention to what we eat; and we try to see the doctor, dentist, and even the nutritionist, if our health plans allow.

So health care is becoming more and more important to us.

At the same time, millennials, famously, want things right away — and I think this is very true with healthcare.

Our generation graduated from college at a time when the economy tanked, and people weren’t hiring. I lived with my parents and worked in retail. I couldn’t afford to be sick. This still rings true today; even though the economy is getting better, and housing prices are rising, no one wants to stay home and be sick. It’s important for us to be better immediately. There’s no waiting around to get better.

We overcompensate, however, and I think my generation tends to overreact. Some illnesses are ‘trendy’ (Gluten-free pasta at the Italian restaurant down the road? Vegan-soy Korean BBQ for dinner tonight?), and we’re asking healthcare providers to keep up with the allergen du jour.

The Internet has made everything accessible. We can learn about any sickness, and any medicine. Pharmaceutical companies advertise everywhere. And we’re bombarded with this type of technology-driven content, reminding us about medicine and what we can do to be healthy. It almost makes us wonder…. are we sick?

The answer is “no.”

Still, paying out-of-pocket to stay healthy simply isn’t an option for my demanding, health-conscious, poor and paranoid generation.

The Baby Boomer Point of View

Evelyn Hanson, Women’s Health Nurse Practitioner

I think that most young people are aware of the high cost of health care, and understand the risk of being uninsured or underinsured. Millennials are statistically less likely to use their health insurance than older people, but many of them know at least someone in their age group who has had an accidental injury or other unexpected health need requiring medical treatment.

Millennials also know that their participation in the insurance marketplace is critical to funding the high cost of health care for the older generation, and, while this may seem an unfair burden to some, it is not likely that many young people will opt out of health insurance all together and pay the penalty tax, especially if their parents weigh in! That said, the millennials will need to shop carefully, and thoughtfully consider the value of employee health benefits when deciding to take a job.

Health care insurance options today are as, or more, complex than they have ever been. For simplicity’s sake, it would be tempting for a millennial to gravitate to a job with health benefits, but a closer analysis of the plans offered might lead the prospective young employee to conclude that getting insurance on his or her own is less expensive and/or more desirable.

As the mother of an almost-26-year-old, who was about to lose his insurance through my health plan, I was overjoyed to learn that he was moving from a freelance job without benefits to full-time employment in the same company. Yet, as he transitioned into this new arrangement, he realized that his net pay was reduced, and the health care benefit plan was worse than plans available on the open market. After crunching the numbers, he concluded that he could do better with a third-party vendor, and he ended up choosing a catastrophic plan with a large deductible. When he later returned to freelance work, he wasn’t tethered to his employer’s health plan. In his mind, the employer-provided health care model can have the adverse effect of promoting less job mobility for individuals or families who depend on employer-provided health care.

Speaking as a health care provider, I find the complexity of health plans cumbersome in my job. While I am grateful that most of the plans provide some level of preventive heath care, I often get the question, 'Will this additional test be covered by my insurance?’ — and I’m left without a good answer.

The responsibility of understanding the plan lies with the consumer, but navigating the particulars is not always easy. And, for those with a large deductible, this question is even more critical. A pap test for cervical cancer may be covered under prevention services, for example, but if the result is abnormal, the diagnostic tests and biopsies may not be covered. This can lead to charges in the thousands of dollars before the deductible is met. And it puts the consumer in the position of having to act as his or her own actuary, which is both a technical and time-consuming activity.

Many in the health field argued for a single-payer healthcare plan for this, among other, reasons; but our country wasn’t willing to make this radical change. Perhaps the millennials will find a better solution that will benefit all of us, no matter what our age! In the meantime, the decision about health insurance will require each individual to weigh the options carefully.

Another Important Point of View 

Chelsea Sprayregen, Director of Policy and Product Development, BeneStream

Health benefits are tied less and less to jobs, and this trend has already begun to help millennials. Studies showed that for Generation X and Baby Boomers, health benefits came only second to salary as a key measure of a job’s worth. But with the passage of the Affordable Care Act (also known as the ACA, or Obamacare), millennials no longer need to rely on their jobs to get affordable health care. People can now remain on their parents’ insurance up to the age of 26, and, after that, they’ll have the opportunity to access affordable — and potentially subsidized — health insurance through online marketplaces created by the ACA. 

This change is great for millennials, who can focus on finding jobs that are right for them and their careers, rather than remaining tied to jobs just because they provide a good health care package. This change can also free up millennials to pursue internships and part-time work, particularly in the first few years of their careers, without fear of a bankruptcy-inducing medical issue.

Young workers change jobs more often than their older counterparts. Knowing that they have access to health insurance will allow them to pursue the best opportunities and to use job change to advance their careers.

For millennials in the low-income sector, especially those without a college education, this decoupling of health insurance from work is even more radically beneficial. Low-skilled jobs are increasingly unstable, with fluctuating hours, high turnover and demands that can be difficult to meet for families. The Affordable Care Act has allowed young parents in this sector to rest assured that they will not lose their health benefits if they are forced to change jobs. The Medicaid expansion has given many of these workers access to health insurance for the first time in their lives.

Large companies will continue to use health insurance and other benefits to compete for top talent. But, increasingly, millennials need not be swayed by these offerings. Instead, they can focus on pursuing the opportunities that best meet their ambitions.