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How employers can extend benefits into everyday holistic mental health support

According to the Canadian Mental Health Association (CMHA), every week at least 500,000 Canadians miss work due to a mental illness across industries. Yet, 62 per cent of employees rarely or never access mental health services, even when they have comprehensive health benefits. The challenge often lies not in the benefits plans themselves, but in whether employees truly understand them, trust them, and feel confident using them. Plans are often built and deployed without employees being walked through what they include, where to find resources, or why those resources matter. This awareness gap is costing organizations not only in productivity, but also in human potential.

Understanding the awareness gap

Most employers do a great job of initially promoting awareness and highlighting mental health coverage, especially during onboarding or benefit reselection periods, but they rarely discuss the details and why they are important. After the first push, the effort to promote the plan often drops off. Even when employees are aware of available mental health support, they may be reluctant to seek it due to little knowledge about coverage, fear of stigma, or unclear claims procedures.

For employees juggling personal and professional stressors, the mental load of figuring out how to access support can be the last straw. Without ongoing communication and accessible tools, benefits remain unexplained and both employees and employers lose out.

Making benefits accessible while keeping the cost sustainable

For employers, including inventive or ancillary benefits options in their plans may seem costly. However, these options often offer more cost control for employers, while providing employees with proactive, value-added support that delivers meaningful help.

Services like employee and family assistance plans (EFAPs), virtual mental health support, telemedicine, medical second opinion services, travel/out-of-country coverage, and virtual pharmacies offer convenient, confidential and flat-fee access to resources, minimizing paperwork, delays and cost volatility.

Prescription drug cost containment solutions go a step further by simplifying access to medications, guiding employees toward effective, lower‑cost alternatives where possible and reducing unnecessary plan spend. These strategies make it possible to confidently promote benefits, knowing they support both the employee’s well-being and the company’s bottom line.

Additionally, tools like a centralized benefits knowledge hub offer resources to learn more about making the most of your benefits coverage, answering any questions in one place and playing a role in breaking down benefit nuances. These resources can turn benefit plan complexities into clear, step‑by‑step guidance, from how to co-ordinate benefits with a spouse, to understanding pharmacy fees, or knowing when a predetermination is required. When employees can find answers in minutes, they feel empowered rather than overwhelmed. This ease of access is essential for those managing mental health challenges, where energy and focus may already be limited.

By raising awareness of these low-barrier tools, employers can offer meaningful support right when it’s needed most without compromising the cost sustainability of their plan.

Normalizing mental health conversations

Mental health support shouldn’t begin only after a crisis. Proactive communication ensures employees know what’s available before challenges escalate. Monthly health tips, quick‑read guides on coordinating benefits with a spouse, or simple explainers on topics like pharmacy dispensing fees, generic versus brand drugs, and specialty medications give employees the tools to make informed decisions early.

Monthly newsletters can help normalize well-being conversations and equip members with small, achievable actions that support big-picture health, both mentally and physically. Sending a direct mail campaign can help promote preventive health habits, from stress management to nutrition and exercise, helping employees strengthen their mental and physical well‑being. Additionally, it can provide bite‑sized, actionable insights employees can apply right away, whether that’s a tip to improve sleep quality or a reminder about free virtual health services included in their plan. Educating employees through digestible tips and easy-to-access resources ensures normalization.

Integrating benefits into workplace culture

Too often, benefits are framed as something to be used when things go wrong. But the most effective organizations integrate their benefits into everyday culture, making them visible, accessible, and stigma-free.

Leaders can model benefit usage, share their own experiences, and actively encourage team members to prioritize their well‑being. Seeing others use resources without fear of judgment increases the likelihood that employees will do the same.

Benefits shouldn’t only show up in HR documents, they should live in the culture of the organization. A benefit plan is only as valuable as an employee’s familiarity with it. And that starts with a culture where care is practiced, not just promised. When employees see others accessing support without stigma, a culture of encouragement arises organically.

From awareness to action

Closing the awareness gap means making benefits easy to find, simple to use, and safe to access without stigma from the very beginning of the onboarding process. Employers who offer accessible, cost-effective resources while keeping benefits visible and relevant can deliver much-needed support without complexity. Employees should feel confident in their plan, know where to access resources, and understand the importance of these resources.

When employees can easily access, trust, and use their benefits, organizations see stronger resilience, lower turnover, and a healthier bottom line. Awareness is the first step but confidence, clarity, and accessibility are what turn benefits into real, lasting support.

Lindsey Gage-Cole is chief transformation officer at GroupHEALTH Benefit Solutions.