Worksite Wellness/Corporate Wellness programs are on the rise and more and more employers are implementing wellness programs and giving incentives to their employees to be healthier. With healthcare costs rising, wellness programs seem to be one of the only ways to stem the increasing cost of health insurance premiums and curb the decline in Americans health and wellness across the nation.
A recent survey by Health2Resources that was in partnership with the National Association of Manufacturers found that from 2008 to 2009, the cash incentive employers offered increased from $204 to $329, almost 61%. Many employers are starting to utilize gift card companies, and incentives for health and wellness could become one of the fastest growing marketplaces for gift card companies.
The most important result from the Health Resources survey is that today 73% of employers monitor the results of their corporate wellness programs versus 14% in 2007, and that an amazing 83% said they normally get higher than a 1:1 return on investment in their corporate wellness program. A recent PricewaterhouseCooper survey found an increase of 7% of employers who give incentives to employers to fill out HRA Health Risk Assessments, 57% in 2008, to 64% in 2009.
The Pricewaterhousecooper survey found that when a gift card is offered to employees for taking a health risk assessment that offers $50 to $299, then 49% of employees participate compared to 42% for gift cards with $50 or less. The majority of employers realize that they must provide significant incentives to have employees change their behavior and engage in a healthy lifestyle.
Without the proper incentives most employees will not engage in wellness programs voluntarily. One of the most positive parts of the Pricewaterhousecooper survey is that it found that 67% of respondents taking the survey are looking at expanding and making their current corporate wellness programs more efficient.
There is no doubt that corporate wellness programs and incentive programs are on the rise and that more employers are seeing a significant return on their investment. Employers are realizing it can be profitable to be involved in wellness!
