Corporate Wellness Watch: April/May 2008
The Use Of Incentives In A Wellness Campaign
Prepared by Lisa Dunderdale, M.S.
Fitness Works at Work, Inc.
In 2007, the U.S. spent over two trillion dollars on health care and it is projected in 2016 to exceed four trillion dollars. This number will continue to rise if nothing is done about it. It is an understatement that the health care line item in the budget is a concern for all employers.
Where do organizations start to make inroads into this problem?
It is common knowledge that many health problems can be prevented through healthy lifestyle changes. D. Edington's, "Health Care Continuum", has brought to the forefront the importance of identifying those at low risk and keeping them low risk as the best approach to control increasing health care costs. A well designed wellness campaign, including incentives to improve participation, will go a long way in identifying health risks, addressing employees' health, whether at low, moderate or high health risk levels, and encouraging healthy behaviors.
Employee participation is a must.
Employee participation is essential to understand the health risks of a population and to design a wellness campaign to improve health status. Research has shown that providing incentives to engage employees in wellness programs improves participation. A well designed approach to a wellness campaign, such as completing a health risk appraisal can yield over 90% participation. Cash, discounts, and premium reductions to reward employees to participate in wellness programs seem to work the best. An added benefit of tying an incentive to a health plan premium reduction or improved plan benefit is that it's usually not taxable to employees. This type of strong incentive may make it easier for the employer to develop a wellness campaign to improve participation and improve employee health status.
What is the framework for developing an incentive program?
- Understand the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA)
Non-discrimination Regulations (December 2006) for wellness programs.
(Next month's Wellness Watch topic.) - Identify state tax laws regarding distribution of incentives to employees.
- Identify the criteria for qualifying for the wellness campaign reward. Will it
include:
- Completing a health risk assessment?
- Attending and taking part in wellness events and other health promotion programs?
- Training in medical self care and healthcare consumerism?
- Reaching a personal wellness goal?
- Determine the reward or reward levels. Remember, people who make small changes may be encouraged to make more if given a reward.
- Develop a comprehensive communication plan with management support to inform employees of the details of the wellness program and criteria for the reward.
- Evaluate the program and share the results with management and employees.
Employee participation in wellness programs is key to the success of a wellness campaign. Research shows that incentives drive short-term behavior change. But initial participation in a wellness program is just the first step. An organization then needs to build a comprehensive wellness campaign to keep employees motivated and to support long-term healthy behaviors.
Our next Wellness Watch will discuss the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) Non-discrimination Regulations (December 2006) for wellness programs.
References:
- National Coalition on Health Care. Health Insurance Cost. 2008.
http://www.nchc.org/facts/cost.shtml - Poisal, JA, et al, Health Spending Projections Through 2016: Modest Changes Obscure Part D's Impact. Health Affairs (21February 2007): W242-253
- Edington DW, Yen LT, Witing P. The financial impact of changes in personal health practices. Journal of Occupational and Environmental Medicine. 1997; 39:1037-1047.
- Serxner, et al. The Art of Health Promotion Newsletter. 2004; March/April. Review on Impact of Financial Incentives on Health Assessment Participation.
- Serxner, et. al. The Art of Health Promotion Newsletter. 2006: May/June. Best Practices for an Integrated Population Health Management (PHM) Program.
- Aldana, Steven G., Insights From the Trenches. Absolute Advantage. Volume 7. 2008.
Fitness Works at Work Corporate Health and Fitness News
Fitness Works at Work congratulates Harvard Pilgrim Health Care for receiving the designation of a Start! Fit Friendly Company from the American Heart Association. FWAW has managed HPHC's two on-site employee fitness centers and provided wellness programming since 2005.
Congratulations to all the Avid Technology Olympians! They are not headed to Beijing but they had a great time competing in this fun company team competition. 275 employees world-wide recorded time spent doing cardio exercise, weight training, and other recreational activities. The winning teams were from Avid locations in Madison, WI, Tewksbury, MA and Irwindale, CA. FWAW's staff on-site at Avid kept everyone on track.
Did You Know..."companies that get proactive about implementing relevant wellness programs are the ones that are going to attract and retain the best talent, keep them healthy and productive and lower their overall health care costs." Richard Easley, the Hay Group as quoted in the Boston Business Journal, April 4, 2008.
Attending the NEEBC Benefit and Trade Show? Please stop by the Fitness Works at Work booth and say hello. The event will be held on May 21, 2008 at Gillette Stadium. Go to neebc.org for details.
