Wellness Incentives.
According to Gordian Health Solutions, the effectiveness of wellness programs in improving health and decreasing health care 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 program.
Nationwide Insurance is seeing results from a small incentive program initiated by one of the corporation’s on-site nurses. to encourage lunchtime walking, the staff member has informally launched a “shoelace program” modeled after the karate-belt color system.
Staff Members progress through the color scale until they reach “black-lace” status. the reward system has resulted in more staff members making commitments to walk during their lunch hour.
At the high end of the reward spectrum, some companies pay cash to workers who meet wellness goals. LuK, Inc. offers workers $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, staff members 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 health care costs.
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, companies can encourage employees to undertake routine screenings and other procedures to respond to medical problems before they become chronic.
Early detection benefits both patient health and company health costs.
Incentivizing wellness program participation with health care 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 lately rolled out a program that allows employees 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, employees and their spouses complete Personal Health Assessments and health testings to determine their levels of health risks.
Nurses, dietitians and exercise experts are available to help moderate- and high-risk participants create 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, employees earn their full premium credit. Because some plans at Worthington require no employee contribution, a cash award takes the place of a credit in those cases.
During year two of the 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 workers will be on the wellness track. the corporation believes that’ll mean a healthier workforce and cost savings for workers and the corporation.
The well being of Worthington workers is the foundation of this program, and both workers and the corporation are expected to benefit from the long-term benefits of the Healthy Options Wellness Program.
While Worthington has taken a broad approach to wellness, other businesses have found success in offering incentives in specific areas. Longaberger, for example, offers a discount on health care policies for staff members who don’t use tobacco.
An individual staff member who does not use tobacco saves $7 per bi-weekly pay. for smoke-free employees with family coverage whose families are also smoke-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 doesn’t 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 unhealthful behaviors is a possible next step in businesss’ attempts to manage health care costs.
Reports that workers would support this kind of action are stacking up. One Ohio company conducted an informal survey that indicated workers would consider it a morale improve if health-conscious workers were relieved of some burden of subsidizing care for workers who engage in behaviors that negatively affect their health.
Whether or not this type of program gains popularity, one thing is sure – the need to control the rise in healthcare costs is becoming ever more pressing.
Take the first step
No matter what the strategy, from offering workers medical resources to providing incentives for healthful behaviors, businesss have a real opportunity to improve morale and productivity, reduce 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 organization. Big strides begin with small steps.