What’s driving most of your healthcare claims may surprise you

In the world of HR and finance, we often talk about benefits as a series of distinct pillars: mental health, physical wellness, leaves of absence, and retention. We invest in apps for meditation, provide premium health insurance for chronic conditions, and offer competitive 401(k) matches.

But if you look closely at the data, those pillars aren’t standing on independent ground. They are all connected by a single, often invisible foundation: caregiving.

For benefits leaders and CFOs, the message is becoming impossible to ignore: if you don’t solve for caregiving, you aren’t actually solving for the downstream claims that hit your bottom line.

Healthcare claims and the caregiver’s physical toll

Caregiving is a physiological burden that manifests in medical claims. According to research from the Family Caregiver Alliance, family caregivers are at a significantly higher risk for chronic conditions like heart disease because they often neglect their own preventative care.

When an employee is balancing a career with caring for an aging parent or a child with specialized needs, their own health takes a backseat. This leads to higher healthcare claims for the employer as minor, manageable issues escalate into high-cost emergency room visits or complex chronic disease management requirements.

Leaves of absence and the predictability gap

Most employers view a leave of absence (LOA) as a discrete, one-time event—a maternity leave or a surgical recovery. However, the Bureau of Labor Statistics notes that a vast portion of FMLA and paid leave claims are rooted in the ongoing, fluctuating needs of caregiving.

Without caregiving support, employees are forced into a cycle of stop-and-go intermittent leave to manage care crises. This creates a “predictability gap” that is far harder for managers to navigate than a single, extended leave. When caregiving is the root cause, the “claim” doesn’t truly end when the employee returns to their desk; the underlying pressure remains, often leading to repeat filings and extended disability claims.

Presenteeism and the cost of being “half-there”

Presenteeism—being physically at work but mentally consumed by outside stressors—is one of the most expensive “invisible” claims an employer faces.
A caregiver might be sitting in a meeting while simultaneously coordinating a home-health aide via text or worrying about a parent who hasn’t answered the phone. This mental load fragments focus, leading to decreased productivity and increased safety errors. Research from the National Institutes of Health (NIH) suggests that the productivity loss from caregiving-related presenteeism (roughly $5,600 per employee annually) can actually outweigh the costs of direct absenteeism.

The breaking point: Burnout and the talent drain

While caregiving impacts all employees, it creates a specific, acute crisis for women that is currently reshaping the workforce.

Data from Cleo’s 3rd Annual Family Health Index™ reveals a stark reality: 64% of working women in the “sandwich generation”—those caring for both children and aging loved ones—report being at a “breaking point.” This is a structural failure where caregiving acts as the foundation underpinning nearly every workplace challenge women face.

Women ages 40-54 face the highest burnout risk across all age groups, with nearly 46% noting exhaustion and warning signs of health deterioration. Most report a significant decline in self care and overall health, and more than half screen positive for depression and anxiety on the Patient Health Questionnaire-4 (PHQ-4) alongside increased social isolation.

When the pressure becomes unsustainable, the talent drain begins. Roughly one-third of women in the sandwich generation have considered leaving the workforce or have already reduced their hours to manage caregiving.

Mental health and the burnout cycle

There is a direct, measurable link between caregiving and mental health claims. Studies suggest that caregivers are twice as likely to experience clinical levels of anxiety and depression.

The “sandwich generation”—those caring for both children and aging parents—is particularly vulnerable. Because the job of caregiving never truly ends, these employees stay in a constant state of high cortisol. Without intervention or support that gets at the root of why cortisol is spiking in the first place, eventually, long-term burnout likely will result in a leave of absence and/or require clinical intervention.

Moving from reactive to root-cause benefits

To move from a reactive posture to a proactive one, employers must provide more than just a directory of services. Meaningful support requires high-touch, human-led interventions that prevent problems before they escalate into the claims listed above, moving caregiving from being perceived as a “soft benefit” to a measurable financial lever.

Your employees’ lives are interconnected. They cannot compartmentalize the health of their loved ones away from their performance at your company. When you solve for caregiving, you aren’t just adding another benefit—you are stabilizing the foundation of your entire organization.