Wellness Program Incentives

It is apparent to almost all Americans (especially those of us in business) that health care 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. Organizations have reached the point where the expense of offering health care insurance is almost as burdensome as government regulation. It’s time for some new thinking on health care and its influence on business and vice versa. “Corporate wellness” as an operational perspective instead of merely window dressing is one way to deal effectively with rising health care costs.

The Insurance Problem

The first step in solving the concern is to realize that an employee’s health is their own responsibility. Expecting corporations to provide unlimited medical insurance coverage is simply unrealistic and unreasonable. It’s time for corporations (on a broad scale) to reconsider their role in providing medical insurance coverage. Instead of providing complete coverage for all employees through group plans, corporations must begin to change the burden of health coverage to those covered.

Here’s the approach. Provide catastrophic health insurance as a group benefit to all workers with a sizable enough deductible (say $5000 per employee) to make the expense affordable for the employer. Then, allow workers to buy their own health 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. Employees can tailor their coverage to their own needs and circumstances using their own doctors. Employers win by stopping the endless cycle of rising expenditures and ever-changing plans. And when people become responsible for the expense 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 employer offers great insurance benefits aren’t they telling you they’re going to cost you more money in the future?

Design 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, workers might be rewarded at year’s end with an attendance bonus. Staff Members would be reimbursed for thriving completion of smoking cessation and weight-loss programs. Businesses would invest in corporate memberships at local health clubs so every employee can participate. Staff Members would be available in-house wellness programs on a variety of concerns ranging from ergonomics to stress management. Finally, corporations would commit to hiring and retaining healthy workers. Simply put, healthy workers cost less and are more productive than unhealthy ones. Applicants ought to be screened for health habits and practices that limit their productiveness and improve the likelihood of future expense. While this may seem harsh, it rewards those workers whose personal lifestyle and habits ensure the best Return on Investment by the business committing to hire, train and pay them.

Be open to “alternative and complementary” approaches

Studies published in major medical care journals reveal that people 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 people look for ways to stay healthy without drugs and surgery, they end up being a net benefit in terms of attendance and work rate. Old prejudices in this area must be discarded in order for corporations to improve work rate and boost profitability

Conclusion

Medical Care expenditures are growing at a staggering pace. Managed care is an abysmal failure. Corporations are buckling under the pressure of providing health coverage to their workers. American competitiveness in the market is sagging. These times call for extraordinary solutions. It’s time for American organizations to consider some out-of-the-box solutions to the medical care crisis. Employer wellness is an approach that is timely, achievable and reasonable given the alternatives. All options ought to be considered while we still have a chance.