Fiscally Fit: Corporate wellness programs grow in popularity

That’s what human resources managers are saying as they work corporate wellness programs into employees’ benefits options.

Wellness programs are one method employers are using to help keep premium costs down, and available options include everything from walking programs to on-site education to employer sponsored fitness activities.

Beyond the financial benefits of lower coverage premiums, wellness programs also can benefit businesses by increasing employee productivity, according to Dan Ruggeri, a partner with insurance company Employee Benefit Design, which implemented a wellness program for its employees a year ago.

“We’ve seen a remarkable change in people’s attitude – how they eat, how they act and how they feel,” Ruggeri said.

AG Financial Solutions began its Healthy Steps initiative three years ago.

The program recently received the Fit-Friendly Company Gold award from the American Heart Association for promoting physical activity in the workplace.

“It began with an employer-funded voluntary health risk assessment,” said AG Human Resources Director David Pierce. “That assessment allows us to look at the group as a whole and figure out our major health risks. Then we’ll schedule (quarterly) seminars on those topics.”

Employee walking programs, employer-funded participation in local walks and runs for charity and access to Weight Watchers at Work are among the choices available to AG employees through Healthy Steps.

Pierce said AG spends about $10,000 a year on its wellness efforts, which also include the Wellness Challenge. Through that program, participating employees set quarterly health improvement goals and can earn as much as 20 percent off their insurance premiums for meeting them.

Part of AG Financial’s wellness efforts are supported through St. John’s Health System’s Corporate Health & Wellness program, which checks employees’ vital information such as weight, blood pressure and body fat.

St. John’s wellness program Executive Director Marilyn Hill said the program, now in its second year, also offers assistance and encouragement, which are crucial for individual success.

“Well-coaching is used to help the people with high risks get a handle on their situation, and get them over that hump of feeling like they’re ready to do something, but they don’t know what to do,” Hill said. “The coach is their cheerleader.”

Financial health

The benefits of wellness programs, however, go beyond the physical, according to Patty Moncada, wellness coordinator with insurance company Jenkins & Associates, which recently launched its Jenkins Wellness program for clients.

“Claims come from sick people going to the doctor constantly,” Moncada said. “We encourage our clients, motivate them and guide them through the program to take small steps and help them help their employees make better decisions.”

While AG Financial’s employees already have noticed the health benefits of the company’s three-year program – in a sample group of 21 participating employees, the number who have four or more health risk factors has decreased by half to three employees – they also are seeing lower health insurance premiums.

“We knew it would take a couple of years to see some gain,” AG HR Director Pierce said. “We’re seeing decreases not only in our risk factors but also in our claims versus premiums in our group reports. That directly impacts our insurance renewal rates.”

Ruggeri pointed out that there are also hidden costs that can be reduced by healthier employees.

“With an unhealthy employee, their claims run north of $7,000 a year, but their hidden costs are three to four times that in absenteeism and presenteeism,” Ruggeri said.

That’s a large part of the reason Employee Benefit Design held an Oct. 5 seminar to discuss corporate wellness programs with more than 50 attendees, including a Springfield R-XII School District representative.

District wellness coordinator Jeff Rogers was hired by the district after officials decided to resuscitate the wellness program it began in the late 1980s. Rogers said he was at the seminar to learn more about corporate wellness program options.

“(Insurance) companies are realizing that they sell insurance, but they also have to find solutions for rising health care costs,” Rogers said. “Throughout the industry, you’re seeing a change in the way people are thinking, and a preventative model is the way everyone is going.”

Program success

Starting a wellness program can be done relatively easily. Making sure it’s successful, on the other hand, takes some effort.

Ruggeri said there are three aspects of a successful corporate wellness program.

“To make a wellness program work, you have to have incentives and you have to have well-designed communications, but you also need a method of tracking education and activity,” Ruggeri said. “If you don’t have all three pillars, what you end up with every year are the same people who were (living healthy) anyway – the people who wanted validation that they do have low cholesterol and low blood pressure.”

While high-level management participation and accurate health assessments are important for any wellness program’s success, offering incentives such as reduced insurance premiums is crucial, according to Ollis & Co. President Richard Ollis.

“If you just offer a wellness program to your staff, you’ll only get 20 percent to 30 percent participation,” Ollis said. “And it will be the healthy that will participate first – it’s a checkup for where they are. Without incentives, you’re only going to drive the healthy to the program.”

Effective incentives, Ollis said, can be anything from reduced premiums to monetary bonuses – but, he added, they have to be significant enough to encourage people to make the extra effort.

Making sure employees are aware of wellness program choices is also important.

“(Employees) feel like their employer cares about them; they don’t just identify them as a problem but also are willing to help them find a solution,” St. John’s Hill said. “They become more dedicated employees, more engaged when they’re at work.”