Care.com and Stride Health Team up to Provide Caregivers Access to Quality Benefits

Care.com, Inc. (NYSE:CRCM), the world’s largest online destination for finding and managing family care, and Stride Health, Inc., the only benefits platform built just for independent workers, announced today that they have joined together to make healthcare and other benefits easily accessible to caregivers nationwide.

With the launch of Care.com Benefits, caregivers registered on Care.com in the U.S. gain access to Stride’s personalized recommendations, financial guidance and year-round navigation support for medical and dental insurance plans in time to meet the January 31, 2016 deadline to enroll in 2016 health plans.

“Caregivers are professionals doing one of the most important jobs imaginable; yet, because their workplace is frequently in someone’s home, they often don’t have access to the same benefits other professionals take for granted. In teaming up with Stride Health, we hope to change that,” said Sheila Lirio Marcelo, founder, Chairwoman and CEO of Care.com. “Care.com Benefits delivers easy, personalized access to health care and coverage for U.S. care providers registered on Care.com, regardless of how many hours they work. We expect to expand upon the benefits offering later this year.”

Caregivers potentially represent a significant portion of “Flex Economy” workers – a growing market of individuals working multiple jobs without the benefits afforded full-time employees – and personal care and home health aide jobs are projected to have the most growth in the next decade. Americans currently spend more than $280 billion on care annually.

“Access to benefits shouldn’t be reserved for those in traditional, full-time employment. We are excited to deliver access to quality and affordable health care options to all Care.com caregivers in the U.S.,” said Noah Lang, co-founder and CEO of Stride Health. “We founded Stride Health to empower every independent worker to make intelligent investments in their health care and to protect their income stream. Working with companies like Care.com, we’re making benefits for flexible workers a reality. Care.com is now delivering unparalleled support and an experience that is above-and-beyond what Americans expect from traditional benefits.”

Care.com Benefits

Care.com Benefits powered by Stride Health enables providers to sign up for their best health plan, plus take advantage of tax credits to lower premium cost, in as little as 10 minutes. Through the alliance with Stride Health, every Care.com caregiver registered in the U.S. will also receive:

• Personal Forecast and Recommendation: Personalized health plan recommendations that optimize total cost of coverage and care each year, comparing 38 factors across thousands of plans to find the most cost-effective plan, keep preferred doctors and ensure affordable prescription drug coverage.
• Preventive Care Planning: Customized care plans that take maximum advantage of free preventive care included with selected health insurance. Caregivers can also use Care.com Benefits to locate in-network doctors and get exclusive access to deals on prescriptions at 70,000 pharmacies nationwide.
• Healthcare Tax and Financial Assessment: Take advantage of healthcare-related tax deductions and tax credits provided by the government to fund coverage premiums (for those that qualify).
• Dedicated Support Advisors: Year-round advisors help caregivers to navigate their health plans and understand how to use their plans to save money on health care.

Stride’s benefits and healthcare guidance is available year-round to registered caregivers. Enrollment in health insurance is available during the Open Enrollment Period, which ends January 31, 2016. Caregivers with “qualifying events” may enroll during the Special Enrollment Period, which begins February 1, 2016.

About Care.com

Since launching in 2007, Care.com (NYSE: CRCM) has been committed to solving the complex care challenges that impact families, caregivers, employers, and care service companies. Today, Care.com is the world’s largest online destination for finding and managing family care, with 10.1 million families and 7.7 million caregivers* across 16 countries, including the U.S., UK, Canada and parts of Western Europe, and approximately half a million employees of corporate clients having access to our services. Spanning child care to senior care, pet care, housekeeping and more, Care.com provides a sweeping array of services for families and caregivers to find, manage and pay for care or find employment. These include: a comprehensive suite of safety tools and resources members may use to help make more informed hiring decisions – such as third-party background check services, monitored messaging, and tips on hiring best practices; easy ways for caregivers to be paid online or via mobile app; and household payroll and tax services provided by Care.com HomePay. Care.com builds employers customized benefits packages covering child care, back up care and senior care consulting services through its Global Workplace Solutions, and serves care businesses with marketing and recruiting support. To connect families further, Care.com expanded its consumer service with its 2013 acquisition of Big Tent, a community platform. Headquartered in Waltham, Massachusetts, Care.com has offices in Berlin, Austin, New York City and Silicon Valley.

*As of September 2015

About Stride Health

Stride Health delivers health coverage, care and compliance as a complete suite of “Benefits for Independents” to individuals. Stride’s platform provides on-demand economy marketplaces, consumer finance platforms and large organizations with a seamlessly integrated solution to protect independent workers.

Now available in all 50 states and Washington D.C., Stride’s coverage suite is bolstered by a dedicated advisory team and software that provides access to in-network medical practitioners, negotiated drug prices at 70,000 local pharmacies, and care delivery in your plan. Stride’s product is available on any device – mobile, tablet or desktop. The company currently works with over 200 insurance carriers nationwide.

Based in San Francisco, Stride Health (www.stridehealth.com) launched in early 2014 and is venture-backed by the leading health and consumer technology firms Venrock, New Enterprise Associates, and Fidelity Biosciences.

View source version on businesswire.com: http://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20160111005425/en/