How Brokers Can Support Men’s Health This Movember

Quick look: November’s focus on men’s health gives brokers a natural opening to show small and mid-sized business (SMB) clients what’s possible: easier access to care, mental health support, earlier screenings, and cancer-specific resources. A professional employer organization (PEO) partner can take that offering further, handling the benefits administration and day-to-day HR support so those benefits are easy to deliver and easy to use.

If you’ve noticed a few more mustaches this month, that’s Movember in action. Every November, millions of men around the world grow mustaches to raise awareness about men’s health and collect donations to fund men’s health organizations.

And while mustaches are fun, the campaign also gives your clients a reason to take a fresh look at their benefits packages. Are employees getting the support they need? Can they afford the care available to them? Do they know how to access their benefits?

Those questions can open the door to conversations about where coverage could improve. By helping SMBs expand and refine their benefits offerings, you can make a difference that lasts well beyond November.

Movember by the numbers

Movember started in 2003 in Melbourne, Australia, when two friends challenged 30 men to grow mustaches and get people talking about men’s health.

Since then, the movement has grown to more than 6 million participants worldwide and has funded more than 1,300 men’s health projects. Its work centers on mental health and suicide prevention, along with prostate and testicular cancer. In 2025 alone, more than 291,000 people registered to participate.

4 ways brokers can make Movember count

Your clients count on you to help them navigate their benefits options. Movember is a good opportunity to revisit their current offerings, identify potential gaps, and discuss ways to improve employee access to care.

1. Make mental health support easy to find

Movember’s signature “Move for Movember” challenge invites participants to run or walk 60 miles over the month, honoring the 60 men lost to suicide every hour worldwide. Movember also reports that men account for about 69% of suicides globally, a reminder of how much mental health benefits matter.

The encouraging news is that stigma continues to decrease. Employees are more comfortable asking for counseling and stress management assistance, and they increasingly ask for them in their benefits package. Per the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), 81% of employees say it would be helpful to receive mental health resources from their employer, and those who do feel more supported by their manager and leadership.

Beyond connecting clients with access to mental health coverage, brokers can also help them make those offerings visible and simple to use. Over 90% of human resources (HR) professionals report offering mental health benefits, but only 73% of employees know they exist. Brokers can help close this gap and encourage more people to get the care they need. For example, when you partner clients with a PEO, their team manages both open enrollment and year-round benefits communications.

2. Lower the cost barrier

Affordable, flexible care goes a long way toward better health outcomes. A recent survey found that 42% of American men skipped or delayed recommended medical care in the past year, with 33% citing cost concerns and 32% saying their symptoms didn’t seem serious enough to see a professional.

This can be an opening for brokers. Helping clients offer telehealth services, flexible spending accounts (FSAs), health savings accounts (HSAs), and high-deductible health plans (HDHPs) can make care more affordable and easier to fit into a busy schedule, so more men feel empowered to take charge of their health. Even a small step, like highlighting telehealth during open enrollment, can help employees put those options to use.

3. Encourage earlier screenings and inclusive care

Prostate cancer is a major focus during Movember, and recent trends make that especially relevant.

According to the American Cancer Society’s latest prostate cancer statistics report, late-stage diagnoses have been climbing quickly, and Black men face roughly twice the prostate cancer mortality of White men. Brokers can help clients review their health plans to understand what preventive services are covered and whether employees have access to appropriate care. Provider networks also deserve attention, particularly when employees may face barriers to finding care that meets their needs.

Younger men also benefit from the conversation. Although prostate and testicular cancers are often linked with older men, men of all ages can be affected, and testicular cancer is the most common cancer among young men worldwide. Early screenings and open dialogue with a healthcare professional can save lives, so it can be helpful to encourage clients to remind employees that preventive care is a smart move at any age.

4. Bring a PEO to the table

Your benefits expertise is already a major draw for clients. Adding a PEO to the mix makes it even stronger, pairing your guidance with Fortune 500-level benefits at competitive rates and a deep bench of HR expertise behind the scenes.

Consider ExtensisHR’s cancer support program, which helps employees navigate different stages of their cancer journey, from prevention and risk assessment through diagnosis and treatment. The program also includes access to resources such as:

• Real-time support from oncology nurses
• Preventive and post-diagnosis DNA testing
• A portal to house medical records, clinical trial information, expenses, and financial aid opportunities
• Hereditary risk screening tests
• Cancer information line
• Cancer support specialists
• An expert pathology review
• An on-site nurse advocate

Mental health support is another important part of the benefits picture. ExtensisHR’s employee assistance program (EAP) offers 24/7 confidential support for personal and work-related challenges, including short-term counseling, referrals, and educational tools.

A PEO partnership extends beyond benefits. With payroll, recruiting, risk management, compliance, and ongoing HR support included, a PEO helps brokers deliver a true one-stop resource and gives clients one more reason to value the relationship.

Conversation starters for your next client meeting

Movember makes it easy to bring up men’s health without it feeling out of the blue. Here are a few questions that can get the discussion going:

• Do employees have affordable, convenient ways to access healthcare, including virtual visits?
• How visible is your mental health support, and do employees know how to use it?
• Are there any gaps in preventive care or screening coverage across your networks?
• Are there additional health and wellness resources that could better support your workforce?
• Would a PEO’s benefits and HR support help round out what you offer today?

Movember starts the conversation. Your expertise keeps it going.

A few mustaches get people talking, but benefits are what turn that talk into action. Accessible and inclusive coverage helps SMB clients build workplaces where men feel supported, and brokers are the ones who make it happen.

ExtensisHR adds to what you do best, bringing Fortune 500-level benefits together with payroll, recruiting, compliance, and day-to-day HR support. That gives your clients one connected solution, and it gives your recommendations extra reach, so the momentum that builds in November carries through the entire year.

And a friendly reminder: the best way to honor Movember is to look after your own health. Schedule your screening soon!