Health Insurance Daily

Employers Increase Wellness Push With New Programs, Incentives

Wellness programs and employee wellness incentives continue to gain in popularity in the wake of unrelenting spikes in medical costs for businesses and patients.

Seventy-five percent of employers now offer a wellness program, according to the Hay Group, a Philadelphia-based consulting firm that recently surveyed 435 employers, up from 73% a year ago. Wellness programs are almost as common as disease management and employee assistance programs; 90% of companies provide a DM program and 81% offer an EAP, Hay reports.

Wellness programs aim to reduce benefits costs through sustained improvements in workforce health. Michael Carter, vice president at Hay, comments, "This is a long-term strategy. It's not something you do to get a huge ROI in 2007. It makes sense from an economic view, and it ultimately benefits the employee."

To read this article in its entirety click on Employee Benefit News.

posted by Mike @ 7:38 AM