Employers of all sizes feel the pain from rising health benefits costs. While there’s no single solution to keeping benefits costs under control, many organizations are finding that wellness initiatives, when done right, offer an effective way to save money.
An Ailing Country
Wellness programs offer many advantages to employers, including reduced health care costs, improved employee health and increased productivity. The reasons for America’s staggering health care costs are many, but these statistics provide some insight.
• The U.S. spends $147 billion in direct health care costs associated with poor diet and physical inactivity.
• Obesity continues to rise, with nearly 28 percent of U.S. adults now considered overweight.
• Diabetes cases in America have increased nearly 43 percent since 2001. Nearly 9 percent of the population has diabetes.
• More than 17 percent of Americans smoke.
(Source: BenefitsPro.com, “Preventable Chronic Disease on the Rise.”)
Companies Suffer the Consequences
These health issues spill over directly into the workplace, as an unhealthy workforce hits employers squarely in the pocketbook:
• Obese employees with three or more chronic health conditions miss an average of 3.5 days of work per month, or 42 days per year.
• Obese Americans spend approximately 36 percent more on health care costs and 77 percent more on medications than those with a healthy weight.
(Sources: Gallup, “Unhealthy U.S. Workers’ Absenteeism Costs $153 Billion,” and the Office of the Surgeon General, “The Surgeon General’s Vision for a Healthy and Fit Nation Fact Sheet.”)
Wellness Initiatives as a Cost-Control Strategy
Wellness initiatives are among the top cost-control strategies implemented by employers. The Society for Human Resource Management’s (SHRM) June 2011Employee Benefits report shows that 75 percent of employers supply their workforce with wellness resources and information.
Many employers that aren’t on the wellness bandwagon plan to hop on board soon. A September 2011 survey of government employers by the International Public Management Association for Human Resources showed that 51 percent planned to implement wellness programs or promote healthy behaviors in the next 12 months.
The return on investment for employers that offer wellness programs looks compelling, regardless of size. For every dollar invested in wellness programs, companies can save up to $6 on health insurance costs, according to the University of Michigan’s Health Management Resource Center’s 2010 Cost-Benefit Analysis and Report.)
Employees Like Wellness Programs, Too
Employees respond positively to wellness programs and are motivated by them. The Principal Financial Group’s fourth-quarter 2011 survey of employees who work at small- and mid-sized businesses provides validation.
• Nearly half of all employees (40 percent) agreed that having an employer-sponsored wellness program would encourage them to stay in their current job.
• 41 percent agreed that wellness benefits encouraged them to work harder and perform better.
• 52 percent agreed they had more energy to be productive at work by participating in a wellness program.
Communication Boosts Participation
For wellness programs to be effective, employees must know about the offerings. Making wellness programs and incentives fun and rewarding are key to participation. Some issues that arise are:
• An assumption by employees that wellness programs are meant only for individuals with existing health conditions.
• Inadequate education of employees about the resources available to them.
• Lack of clear communication to employees when the wellness program is introduced and implemented.
Form A Wellness Committee
If your company is big enough, forming a wellness committee can be fun and helpful. Employees on the wellness committee should be representatives from different departments that obtain various ideas from the masses. Some great ideas for wellness activities/programs can include:
- Wellness Bingo (include physical, emotional, and spiritual well being)
- Nutrition Bingo
- Wellness Olympics
- Wellness Walking Challenge
- Wellness Recipe Challenge and Cook Off
- Nutrition Newsletter
- Wellness Monthly Calendars
- Wellness Fair
- Wellness Tips included with paychecks
- Company 5K Run
- Flu Shot Clinic
Encourage wellness committee members to get everyone involved, and if possible, have fun prizes geared towards wellness. Remember wellness involves not only healthy eating and exercise, but personal and spiritual well being. Organize events that also focus on emotional wellness as well as the physical wellness.
The upshot: Adding wellness initiatives—or maximizing the ones the organization offers—can help lower benefits costs. At the same time, employee morale can improve as workers begin to feel better about themselves and their employers.
(article information found on the SHRM website)