Employer Wellness

It is apparent to virtually every American (especially those of us in business) that healthcare costs are skyrocketing out of control. No one doubts that either the market will solve the issue OR the government will impose one on us. Managed care has failed from either a cost containment or quality of care perspective. Companies have reached the point where the expense of offering medical insurance is almost as burdensome as government regulation. It’s time for some new thinking on healthcare and its influence on business and vice versa. “Corporate wellness” as an operational perspective rather than merely window dressing is one way to deal effectively with rising healthcare costs.

The Insurance Problem

The first step in correcting the concern is to realize that an employee’s health is their own responsibility. Expecting employers to offer unlimited health insurance coverage is simply unrealistic and unreasonable. It’s time for employers (on a broad scale) to reconsider their role in providing health insurance coverage. Instead of providing complete coverage for all staff members through group plans, employers must start to modify the burden of health coverage to those covered.

Here’s the approach. Give catastrophic healthcare insurance as a group benefit to all staff members with a large enough deductible (say $5000 per employee) to make the cost affordable for the company. Then, allow staff members to buy their own healthcare insurance policies (based on their own needs) and pay for them through payroll deduction with pre-tax earnings. There are numerous insurance companies that sell individual plans on this basis. Everybody wins. Staff Members can tailor their coverage to their own needs and circumstances using their own doctors. Corporations win by stopping the endless cycle of rising costs and ever-changing plans. And when individuals become responsible for the cost of their own insurance, they become more attentive to their own health. Besides, if an employee is interested in working for you ONLY because your company offers great insurance benefits aren’t they telling you they’re going to cost you more money in the future?

Develop a “Wellness Culture”

Our current “sickness culture” perpetuates the health care crisis and hastens the demise of market-based solutions. By sickness culture, I mean our focus on health concerns rather than on having a healthy worksite and performance culture.

So, what would a “wellness culture” look like? First, rather than paid sick days, employees might be rewarded at year’s end with an attendance bonus. Employees would be reimbursed for thriving completion of tobacco cessation and weight-loss programs. Corporations would invest in corporate memberships at local health clubs so every employee can participate. Employees would be provided in-house wellness programs on a variety of problems ranging from ergonomics to stress management. Finally, corporations would commit to hiring and retaining healthy employees. Simply put, healthy employees cost less and are more constructive than unhealthy ones. Applicants should be screened for health habits and practices that limit their work rate and improve the likelihood of future expense. While this may seem harsh, it rewards those employees whose personal lifestyle and habits ensure the best Return on Investment by the organization committing to hire, train and pay them.

Be open to “alternative and complementary” approaches

Research studies published in primary medical care journals reveal that individuals who use “alternative and complementary” health modalities (including chiropractic, acupuncture, yoga and massage) are generally healthier, better educated, take fewer medications and miss fewer days from work than the average American. Since these individuals look for ways to stay healthy without prescriptions and surgery, they end up being a net benefit in terms of attendance and productiveness. Old prejudices in this area ought to be discarded in order for employers to better productiveness and boost profitability

Conclusion

Healthcare expenditures are rising at a staggering pace. Managed care is an abysmal failure. Employers are buckling under the pressure of offering health coverage to their workers. American competitiveness in the market is sagging. These times call for extraordinary solutions. It’s time for American employers to consider some out-of-the-box solutions to the healthcare crisis. Business wellness is an approach that is timely, achievable and reasonable given the alternatives. All options must be considered while we still have a chance.