Strategies Boost Employees’ Health

Certain employer strategies, such as consumer driven or HSA (health savings) plans and wellness programs, are effective in motivating employees to improve their health, according to a survey from Aon Hewitt. Researchers surveyed more than 2,800 employees and their dependents covered by employer health plans. Sixty percent of employees who are enrolled in consumer-driven plans say they have made positive behavior changes related to their health; 28% get routine preventative care more often; 23% seek lower-cost health care options and 19% research health costs more frequently.

Seventy-eight percent of employees who are enrolled in consumer-driven plans are satisfied with the plans and 89% expect to re-enroll in this option for 2013. Ninety-seven percent of workers who have been in an account-based plan for two years or more say they plan to re-enroll.
Up to half of consumers would participate in a wellness activity that offered no financial incentive as long as participation was easy and convenient. Sixty-three percent of consumers would complete a health risk questionnaire for a monetary reward, and 62% would participate in a healthy eating or weight management program. Forty-eight percent would participate in a medically sponsored program to help them manage a health condition.

Fifty-eight percent of employers offer incentives for completing a lifestyle modification program (for example, to quit smoking or lose weight). About one-quarter offer incentives (monetary or non-monetary) for making progress toward meeting acceptable ranges for biometric measures, such as blood pressure, BMI, blood sugar, and cholesterol.
Eighty-six percent of workers who received suggested action steps based on a health-risk questionnaire went on to take some action, and 65% made at least one lifestyle improvement. Total health care costs per employee were $10,522 in 2012, and employers’ share of that cost was $8,318. When asked how much of the bill their employer pays, consumers significantly underestimate the portion their employers paid, guessing about half of the cost. For more information, visit www.businessgrouphealth.org.