By Joel Lee
The work of human resource professionals has never been easy. Consistently and equitably balancing business imperatives with human capital investment opportunities requires initiative and a balanced perspective on how to make things work in a resource constrained corporate budget. On one hand, they seek to build a well-trained, well-compensated and personally secure workforce deeply motivated to making the business successful. On the other hand, they are charged with doing that even as HR budgets get tighter every year.
Healthcare costs grow relentlessly forcing difficult trade-offs in building talent, in creating strong cultures and in improving competencies within the company. Every human resource professional knows that what happens outside the workplace can often be a direct threat to the performance of individual staff but have little bandwidth or budget that can be allocated to influencing the environment outside.
FEDlogic was established five years ago with a dual purpose in mind – to offer support for working families at no-cost by connecting them with the right federal and state benefits and to offer those benefits to employees while reducing their employer’s health benefit costs. FEDlogic experts have held federal and state government positions specializing in Medicare, Medicaid, Social Security and programs for the disabled. FEDlogic expertsadvocate for employees and their families to secure public benefits perfectly tailored to their needs. By finding options for workers that offer better health coverage at a lower cost to the employee, FEDlogic reduces the insurance cost borne by the employer. By helping workers build more stable lives, the company benefits by having more reliable and better focused employees. By connecting workers with more effective and more affordable healthcare coverage, employers can significantly reduce their overall health benefit expenditure.
Take a look at a few cases where FEDlogic has been especially valuable:
- Employees or their spouses are eligible for Medicare at costs to them that are below their cost for the employer-sponsored health plan; and many times provide better coverages
- Workers or their dependents who are faced with a disabling condition from an accident, illness, or a cancer diagnosis may be eligible for federal health coverage and disability benefits
- Low wage-earning families may find their state’s Medicaid program allows them or their dependent children to qualify for health benefits even if one or both parents are working
- An employee or dependent who develops end stage renal disease can quickly get on Medicare- providing much needed relief to that family from a financial and health coverage perspective all while saving the employer as much as $250,000 a year
- Employees and their spouses are educated to maximize their Social Security retirement, spousal, children, and widow benefits.
Frank Cardenas, the founder and CEO of FEDlogic, learned early on about the value of supportive federal programs. When his immigrant parents found that his older sister, Alex, was not progressing the way she should as an infant, they struggled to understand why. With little knowledge on available benefit programs, along with difficult language barriers, Frank’s parents struggled implement Social Security Disability Insurance. Once they were finally able to apply, it allowed Alex to continue her progress with financial support and training services that made all the difference to his family.
From that early experience Frank understood how critical federal programs could be for families. He went to law school and began work at the Social Security Administration as a Senior Adjudicator and Congressional Liaison. It was there he learned the real sweep and power of federal programs. He also learned how difficult it was to advocate for families within the constraints of federal rules. It was with this in mind that he and his wife Elizabeth, founded FEDlogic, a mission-based company that offers federal and state benefit advocacy and education. It is a solution that FEDlogic believes every employer should consider both to help their workforce but also to reduce their health insurance expenses.
Today, the company and its team of experts have more than 300 clients in dozens of industrial sectors from banking to accounting, from transportation to health care. FEDlogic is endorsed by the Tennessee Hospital Association and has partnered to provide navigation to their network of hospitals in Tennessee and nationally. Every one of FEDlogic’s clients has experienced a return on investment in their first year of implementation. So confident is the company in the value of its service that it guarantees if it fails to produce a positive ROI, it will provide the services at no charge for the second year.
FEDlogic works with best-in-class employers and their HR departments to recognize how and when to help a family in crisis or through a life transition. Once a company has implemented service and informed it’s employees of their new benefits available through FEDlogic, participation by the employee is strictly voluntary. When an employee calls into FEDlogic, an expert is assigned, and a phone consultation is arranged. That expert looks at each individual situation to determine any programs available that may provide better assistance, lower cost, or provide more coverage. The experts educate the employee on those benefits available to them, and if the employee decides to move forward, they are helped every step of the way from initial application through final disposition on an unlimited basis.
Some of the most enthusiastic supporters are health benefit brokers. They have found in FEDlogic a partner who can help by significantly reducing health insurance costs and at the same time helping workers and their families. Anita Blackmer, FEDlogic’s Business Development Officer, has had first-hand experience as a former benefits consultant. She explains, “Prior to joining [FEDlogic], I found employees needed assistance and the practical help in understanding federal and state benefits. The bonus for me is that by finding better coverage for themselves or family members, my clients spent significantly less money on healthcare and could offer a richer benefit plan to all of their employees. It was a true win-win for my clients and their workforce.”
When the COVID 19 pandemic was creating huge disruptions to the workplace, the FEDlogic team stepped up and worked with clients to help furloughed employees file for unemployment compensation both to support those families and to better ensure the employees would be available for recall when the pandemic recedes. One hospital client with 12,000 employees was faced with sudden and dramatic furloughs. Within days the FEDlogic team was on the ground and within three weeks had conferred with nearly 1000 workers and their families and helped them navigate through state unemployment, federal stimulus benefits, and other COVID 19 relief support.
“FEDlogic is here to help support families when they need help the most,” said Founder Frank Cardenas, “…whether that is helping them in understanding their Medicare and retirement benefits, if they have been affected by a major illness and need help, or if they are lower income and need other healthcare options besides that of their employer – FEDlogic will always be there to help these individuals. Families gravitate to those service providers who advocate for them, who don’t pressure them into anything, who don’t have a sale to make to them – which is why FEDlogic’s engagement from our corporate clients has been so high.”
For more information visit www.fedlogicgroup.com or contact Anita Blackmer, Chief Business Development Officer, at 615-948-3648 or by email at [email protected].
