Papa, a curated platform of companionship and support for older adults, families, and other vulnerable populations, today announced it is accelerating access to its Papa Pal service through partnerships with employers. The expansion of Papa's employer benefit program comes on the heels of a momentous year for Papa and the company's clear demonstration of the benefits of companion care. With continued success in Medicare Advantage plans and expansion into Medicaid, Papa is ready to support employees in their caregiving needs.
Caregiving is a critical issue impacting today's workforce, with three of four US workers having a second unpaid job as a caregiver. The burden is particularly felt by the sandwich generation; 47% of adults in their 40s and 50s have a parent age 65+ and are either raising a young child or financially supporting a grown child. Moreover, caregiving has become a diversity and inclusion issue, for reasons including the burden is disproportionately carried by women. The issue has been further exacerbated by the pandemic, resulting in record numbers of women leaving the workforce. This all exists against a backdrop of a historically tight labor market, emphasizing the importance of creating an attractive employer brand.
"For employees, the impossible balancing act between one's work and family roles impacts them, their dependents, and ultimately, their employer," said Andrew Parker, founder and CEO of Papa. "Papa has shown success with Medicare Advantage and Medicaid members in terms of reduced loneliness and improved health, and we believe there is tremendous opportunity to extend our model to flexible family care, for help when, where, and how it's most needed."
Supporting caregivers is not only the right thing to do, but has positive downstream effects on employee well-being, productivity, and retention — all areas where employer support is more and more seen as table stakes. Papa's flexible family care can be tailored to employees' increasingly diverse and complex needs, for help with older or ill loved ones, children, and the caregiver themselves.
Employees can take advantage of this benefit by requesting a Papa Pal via an easy-to-use app. Employees can indicate "favorite pals" and Papa will work to maintain continuity. Papa Pals are available to help employees across the U.S. with social care and other support such as transportation, running errands, household tasks, and more.