$127,000 Saved in Year 1

The Challenge

This Ohio-based manufacturer operates 3 production facilities with roughly 200 full-time employees. Like most manufacturers, they faced a brutal trifecta:

• Healthcare premiums rising 10-12% annually — eating into already thin margins on raw materials and labor
• High turnover on the production floor — experienced operators leaving for companies with better benefits packages
• Employees skipping prescriptions — high-deductible plans meant workers were choosing between medications and groceries, leading to more sick days and workers' comp claims

Their HR director described it bluntly: "We were spending more every year and our people were getting less. Something had to change."

The Solution

Optiv Health implemented a Section 125 supplemental health plan that stacked on top of their existing major medical coverage. No disruption, no carrier change, no confusion.

The rollout included:

• Pre-tax premium deductions reducing the company's FICA tax burden by 7.65% on every contributed dollar
• Free prescriptions — 1,000+ generic medications at $0 copay, covering the most common medications their workforce needed (blood pressure, diabetes, pain management)
• 24/7 telehealth access for employees and dependents, eliminating unnecessary ER visits for non-emergency issues
• Online enrollment portal — employees enrolled in under 15 minutes during a single lunch-and-learn session

The Results

Financial Impact

Metric	Before	After	Impact
FICA Tax Savings	—	$18,360/yr	New savings
Claims Costs	$840K/yr	$672K/yr	-20%
ER Visit Costs	$95K/yr	$57K/yr	-40%
Total Annual Savings	—	—	$127,000

Employee Impact

• 94% participation rate — nearly every eligible employee enrolled
• Medication adherence up 67% — when prescriptions are free, people actually take them
• Sick days down 22% — healthier workers mean more consistent production schedules
• Turnover dropped 18% — experienced operators stopped leaving for marginal pay bumps at competitors

"The FICA tax savings alone paid for the entire program. Everything else — the claims reduction, the lower turnover, the happier employees — that was pure profit. I wish we'd done this five years ago."

— VP of Human Resources

Timeline

• Week 1: Initial consultation and savings analysis
• Week 2: Plan design and compliance review
• Week 3: Employee enrollment (lunch-and-learn sessions at each facility)
• Week 4: Benefits active — employees filling free prescriptions on Day 1