Wellness Programs : Wellness Incentives.
According to Gordian Health Solutions, the effectiveness of health promotion programs in improving health and lowering healthcare costs is directly linked to incentives –
• The more substantial the incentives,
• The higher the success rate.
Incentives can range from tokens of achievement, such as t-shirts, water bottles and sports equipment, to more substantial financial awards, such as cash incentives or copay vouchers for the successful completion of a health promotion program.
Nationwide Insurance is seeing results from a small incentive program initiated by among the company’s on-site nurses. To encourage lunchtime walking, the staff member has informally launched a “shoelace program” modeled after the karate-belt color system.
Employees progress through the color scale until they reach “black-lace” status. The reward system has resulted in more employees making commitments to walk during their lunch hour.
At the high end of the reward spectrum, some companies pay cash to staff who meet wellness objectives. LuK, Inc. offers staff $250 for kicking the tobacco habit and remaining smoke free for 12 months.
For logging fitness points that add up to 10 miles a month, workforce are eligible for health assessments, which could lead to reward amounts of up to $225.
The most effective motivator, according to Gordian research, comes through linking participation in wellness programs directly to insurance premiums. Doing so clearly demonstrates to employees the positive effects of wellness on their own healthcare costs.
All too often, the first step in linking wellness programming to insurance coverage is lowering deductibles for wellness care or eliminating deductibles altogether. By adding this benefit, corporations can encourage workforce to undertake routine screenings and other procedures to respond to health problems before they become chronic.
Early detection benefits both patient health and corporation health care costs.
Incentivizing wellness program participation with healthcare credits
More frequently, businesss are going beyond increased wellness care coverage and looking to demonstrate the importance of wellness by linking participation to employees’ bottom lines.
Worthington Industries has recently rolled out a wellness program that authorizes staff members to eliminate their portion of the insurance premium by enrolling in a Healthful Choices wellness program.
During the first year of the Healthy Options program, staff members and their spouses complete Personal Health Assessments and health testings to determine their levels of health risks.
Nurses, dietitians and exercise professionals are available to help moderate- and high-risk participants develop individual action plans for improved health through the use of educational materials, behavior modification, telephone help from third-party program health coordinators, and formal health management programs.
By completing the assessments, workforce earn their full premium credit. Because some plans at Worthington require no staff member contribution, a cash award takes the place of a credit in those cases.
During year two of the health promotion program, the wellness bar is raised slightly. To continue to receive the wellness credit, participants in the moderate- to high-risk category will be required to work at establishing goals with third-party health coordinators.
Year three raises the bar again, requiring participants to show progress in meeting goals and to continue to work with health coordinators to reach goals.
After year three, Worthington Industries personnel will be on the wellness track. The organization believes that’ll mean a healthier workforce and cost savings for personnel and the organization.
The well being of Worthington staff members is the foundation of this wellness program, and both staff members and the corporation are expected to benefit from the long-term benefits of the Healthful Choices Health Promotion Program.
While Worthington has taken a broad approach to wellness, other corporations have found success in offering incentives in specific areas. Longaberger, for instance, offers a discount on health care policies for workforce who do not use tobacco.
An individual worker who does not use tobacco saves $7 per bi-weekly pay. for tobacco-free workforce with family coverage whose families are also tobacco-free, the savings increases to $14 per pay.
The next step – Penalizing harmful behaviors
As it stands, health care is the only type of insurance that does not focus on penalizing for behaviors that put the insured party at risk. With health care costs rising so dramatically, that could soon change.
Just as an accident likely raises auto insurance premiums, increasing premiums for those who engage in unhealthy behaviors is a possible next step in businesss’ attempts to manage healthcare costs.
Reports that staff would support this kind of action are stacking up. One Ohio employer conducted an informal survey that indicated staff would consider it a morale increase if health-conscious staff were relieved of some burden of subsidizing care for staff who engage in behaviors that adversely affect their health.
Regardless of whether or not this kind of wellness program gains popularity, one thing is sure – the need to control the rise in health care costs is becoming ever more pressing.
Take the first step
Whatever the strategy, from offering workforce medical resources to providing incentives for healthful behaviors, corporations have a real opportunity to improve morale and productivity, decrease rates of absenteeism and control healthcare costs through wellness.
The first step is committing to taking one, no matter what size effort is appropriate for your business. Big strides begin with small steps.