More restrictive plans may also limit coverage for out-of-network services. 'Employees in remote work situations are not necessarily located in the same geographic region as the employer's office, which means they may no longer be able to access in-network coverage and will be forced to pay higher costs for out-of-network providers,' said Ann Murray, a partner with law firm Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP in Atlanta. 'It changes the analysis, so employers may instead focus on the top five locations for talent to drive their health plan partner strategy,' said Stone.Įven structuring health plan networks around their office locations may not be appropriate in all cases. For example, employers may need to rethink a strategy that provides incentives for employees to choose the best health care providers located near company worksites. Having a significant number of 'work from anywhere' workers, however, introduces new challenges for employee benefits design and administration.įrom a health benefits perspective, employers should review and adjust their strategies to accommodate a far-flung workforce. 'If more people are working remotely, employers can be location-agnostic in their talent strategies,' said Julie Stone, managing director with consultancy Willis Towers Watson in Parsippany, N.J. With a portion of staffers working in-office and a portion working from home. When staffing firm LaSalle Network recently asked 350 corporate executives how they think their workforces will be modeled 12 months from now, a majority (77 percent) expected a hybrid approach Whether by choice or need, however, many employees are likely to continue working remotely-some may have moved to locations too far away to accommodate commuting, while others may simply prefer to keep working from home.Įmployers are recognizing that there are advantages to allowing remote work, including the ability to widen the pool of potential employees and to reduce the fixed costs associated with physical office space. As COVID-19 vaccination rates increase and the pandemic eases, business worksites are reopening.

Working from home benefit