At BeneLynk, we believe that the term Social Determinants of Health (SDoH) is often too narrowly defined. We think of SDoH as the important life events and experiences that have shaped the person you are today. In that context, military service, being a veteran, is an important SDoH. One of the first challenges we set out to address at BeneLynk was to help Medicare Advantage plans to identify and connect with the veterans in their population. Many veterans in Medicare also receive health services through the Department of Veterans Affairs (VA). Too often, this care is invisible to Medicare Advantage plans – meaning veterans are treated in two silos. At BeneLynk, we help veterans by making it easy for them to share information about the care they receive at the VA with the Medicare Advantage plan.
We’ve worked hard to develop deep relationships with various veteran-related organizations including: The Department of Veterans Affairs, Employer Support for Guard & Reserve (ESGR), National Guard/Reserve Units, Veteran Service Organizations (VSOs), Local Veterans Employment Representatives (LVERs), Disabled Veteran Outreach Program Specialists (DVOPs), and veteran 501c3s, such as Wounded Warrior Project and USA Cares.
Because of our commitment to serving veterans, we have also dedicated ourselves to employing veterans and military spouses. We have a multi-year plan to make BeneLynk a veteran-ready organization. Our veteran talent outreach efforts have grown to a systematic approach for sourcing premium veteran talent and military spouses first. We have learned to leverage internal veteran colleagues to step outside their normal day-to-day roles and represent the business at events (e.g. veteran job fairs), and we have adapted our company policies to accommodate Guard and Reservists by paying the difference between their regular pay and their base pay when serving on duty.
So, we were proud to learn this week that BeneLynk has been honored by being included in the Military Times Best for Vets: Employers 2020. According to the Military Times, this ranking “is the comprehensive annual ranking of the country’s best employers and organizations with military-connected employment programs, benefits, and support efforts.” The list includes many of the nation’s premier healthcare organizations, and we are honored to be in their company.
Our journey continues. We’ve recently enhanced our onboarding process to include military culture education, and we are creating a veteran business resource group to assist with everything from onboarding/integration to mentorship to career development, and other military-focused workplace initiatives. To help our clients understand the SDoH of veterans, we believe our organization needs to have veteran voices throughout. Our Veteran Lynk services will continue to improve as we listen and learn from our veteran colleagues.
As always, we are excited to talk about our Veteran Lynk program or Social Determinants of Health in general. If you want to chat, please drop us a note today at Sales@BeneLynk.com.
About the Author
Sean Libby has been an advocate for seniors, people with disabilities, veterans, and individuals with low income for over 18 years. At BeneLynk, we are committed to helping managed care plans to deliver superior Social Determinant of Health solutions to their members. We are always looking to learn more and would like to hear your ideas on how best to assist members in need. Drop us a note at Sales@BeneLynk.com.