MassMutual, a Springfield-based insurance company, recently announced new policies that would increase insurance coverage for its employees, including for fertility treatments, and would allow them to take time off to grieve or care for anyone they define as a “loved one.”
MassMutual has more than 10,000 employees worldwide and is one of the largest employers in Massachusetts, according to MassLive.
Dr. Claudia Coplein, head of health and wellness at MassMutual, said in an emailed statement the company’s new benefits were designed to best serve its employees’ physical, emotional, financial and social wellness.
“Our enhanced benefits were designed to help our employees and their loved ones, however they may define them, live their best lives – and feel cared for in all phases of their lives – enabling them to achieve their full potential,” Coplein said.
Paula Tremblay, a spokesperson for MassMutual, wrote in an email the increase in employees’ healthcare coverage will not increase costs for the company’s customers.
“MassMutual has absorbed the cost as we believe these changes,” Tremblay wrote, “will enhance the overall employee experience and allow us to continue attract and retain a talented workforce.”
Brent Atkins, the vice president of business development at Progyny — a healthcare company with which MassMutual has partnered to provide fertility treatments — wrote in an email Progyny is looking forward to working with MassMutual to support their employees.
“Fertility treatments can be costly, and with our bundled benefit the aim is to ensure patients receive the best treatment, the first time without having barriers to care,” Atkins wrote. “By MassMutual adopting this benefit, it proves their commitment to the happiness and well-being of their workforce. We hope that our benefit will enable all employees at MassMutual who wish to have a child achieve this dream.”
Atkins added this new coverage will be a positive for MassMutual employees, as it will give them greater options to build families.
“MassMutual’s new coverage policy allows their employees more flexible family building options and fertility coverage for those who need it,” he wrote, “including single parents by choice and same-sex couples.”
Margo Lindauer, an associate professor in the Department of Health Sciences and School of Law at Northeastern University, said she thinks all parents deserve time off when they have children, even if they are not the birth mother.
“There’s obviously physical healing components if you birth a child, but any new parents need time off for bonding, but also for acclimating to parenthood and for figuring out their new roles as parents,” Lindauer said. “So I think extending parental leave for both mothers and fathers, whether or not you’re the biological parents, is really, really smart business and really good for the workforce.”
Hannah Jope, 20, of Allston, said she thinks it is important to allow employees to receive paid leave to take care of loved ones.
“I’ve had sick family members in the past, and one of the big struggles was my parents getting time off of work to be able to help them,” Jope said.
Kelly Horan, 24, of Allston, said she thinks women and LGBTQ communities deserve greater focus from health care providers.
“A lot of women’s health issues, or like trans help, a lot of the things that aren’t really covered are considered outside of the realm of normal healthcare,” Horan said, “even though there shouldn’t be a health issue.”
Brighton resident Joanna Stumper, 28, said she thinks healthcare for families in general needs to be paid more attention to.
“In general, it would be important that everybody paid more attention to holistic health and having opportunity to do that,” Stumper said. “I think one of the major problems we have is that we’re all working all the time, … and there’s not as much focus on families and health care in general.”
Nyah Jordan contributed to the reporting of this article.
