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Legal Disclaimer: The appropriateness and legal permissibility of the wellness programs and strategies discussed in this presentation should be confirmed independently by groups before undertaking. Not all programs described are currently available for NY insured market. Wellness-based financial incentives may not be available. State law and regulations may apply. Federal rules relating to wellness programs offered by ASO and insured groups also may apply. All results described are for purposes of example only. Actual program results will depend on various factors and cannot be guaranteed.

May 2012
Employer Webinar
Services provided by Empire HealthChoice HMO, Inc. and Empire HealthChoice Assurance, Inc., licensees of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, an association of independent Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans. Not for further distribution.

• Your employees are your most valuable asset. You want them to be healthy, but there’s more to it than that. When your employees are healthy…
• Productivity can increase
• Premiums or total medical spending may be reduced
 Wellness programs and a corporate “culture of health” can help employees change their lifestyle and improve their health
 Providing wellness solutions for employees is a sound business strategy and can help control costs
• According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the average person spends
53% of their waking hours at work.¹
1. U.S. Department of labor, Bureau of Labor Statistics website,
American Time Use (June 2010), www.bls.gov

“There is clear evidence that the major chronic conditions that account for so much of the morbidity and mortality in the U.S., and the enormous direct and indirect costs associated with them, in large part are preventable - and that to a considerable degree they stem from , and are exacerbated by, individual behaviors . In particular, overweight and obesity, lack of physical activity, and smoking greatly increase the risk of developing the most serious chronic disorders.”
“By changing the way they live, individual Americans could change their personal health status and the health landscape of the Nation dramatically.”
Source: Prevention Makes Common Cents” DHHS http://aspe.hhs.gov/health/prevention/ accessed 5.2.2012

• Helping employees improve their health is one of the best long-term strategies for reducing your health care costs.
 Based on a 2010 study, nine out of ten wellness program participants said they had success in losing weight and got regular checkups
 More than 80% said that they increased their level of exercise, improved their diet and nutrition, or managed blood pressure, cholesterol levels, and stress
 More than half (57%) of employees who participated in their companies’ health & wellness programs said they were very effective at impacting their productivity
The above information is based on results of 8th Annual Study of Employee Benefits
Trends, Findings from the National Survey of Employers and Employees, MetLife
2010. Results do not relate to Empire-offered programs. Actual program results not guaranteed.

 89% of employees expect their workplace culture to promote healthy lifestyle concepts 1
 91% of employees believe employers have a responsibility to maintain and improve the health and well-being of their employees 2
 Nearly two out of three individuals are interested in participating in wellness programs and 20% are even willing to pay extra for a wellness program 3
1
2
3
Faircloth, Inc 2009
SOURCE: HMC Building a Culture of Health study. Q3 2008 (outcomes validated Q4
2008. Results do not relate to Empire members.)
2008 Survey of Health Care Consumers. Deloitte Center for Health Solutions.

Typical Employer Definition of Wellness:
▪ An opportunity to change the lives of employees for the better, potentially resulting in a healthier business through increased productivity and reduced medical expenses
Typical Member Definition of Wellness :
▪ Wellness is having the energy and vitality to be productive and feel and perform our best
Definition of a Culture of Health:
 A Culture of Health is one in which your employees know that it is important to the company that they make decisions and behave in such a way as to help them be as healthy as possible
•
Concrete goals
• On-site health coaching
• Internally published metrics
• Formal Wellness Committee
•
Tobacco free workplace
• 24/7 NurseLine
• Preventive health Services
• On-site wellness classes

Companies with a Culture of Health can have a greater impact on their medical trend over time
From 2006 to 2008, average annual percent change in medical trend
Large = 1,000+ Employees
Source: HMC Building a Culture of Health study. Q3 2008 (outcomes validated Q4 2008). Based on 2009 telephone survey of 400 company decision makers to ask whether they were working to build a “Culture of Health” and, if so, what kind of outcomes they were having. Does not necessarily correspond to Empire groups. Note that results depend on various factors and cannot be guaranteed.

Companies with a Culture of Health may experience greater outcomes than their competitors
Perceived positive outcomes compared to peer companies (mean agreement score) based on
2009 telephone survey of decision makers at 200 large employers
10-point scale:
1 = My company is much
worse than peer group
10 = My company is much
better than peer group
Source: HMC Building a Culture of Health study. Q3 2008 (outcomes validated Q4 2008). Based on 2009 telephone survey of 400 company decision makers to ask whether they were working to build a “Culture of Health” and, if so, what kind of outcomes they were having. Does not necessarily correspond to Empire groups. Note that results depend on various factors and cannot be guaranteed.

®

®
Management
• Comprehensive Medical Management:
Utilization Management, Case
Management, Complex Care, NICU, and
Transplant
• ConditionCare*
• Support Programs (vascular at-risk, oncology, low back pain, musculoskeletal)
• End Stage Renal Disease *
• MyHealth Coach
Tools & Resources
• MyHealth@ Empire, such as:
• MyHealth Assessment
• MyHealth Record
•Care Comparison
•SpecialOffers@Empire
®
Guidance
• 24/7 NurseLine SM
• Future Moms
• Behavioral Health UM
•
MyHealth Advantage*
• Pharmacy*
•
Healthy Lifestyles
• Worksite Wellness
• EAP
•
Staying Healthy Reminders
• Productivity Solutions
All 360 ° Health programs are not listed above. The programs listed in bold are optional and available for ASO Large group accounts at additional cost. The programs listed with an asterisk (*) are included for fully insured Large Groups accounts.

• Wellness Promotion Resources:
▪ Time Well Spent
 Downstate empireblue.com/timewellspent
 Upstate empireblue.com/bc/timewellspent
▪ Wellness Calendar http://wellnesscalendar.empireblue.com
▪ MyHealth Assessment Promotional
Toolkit on Time Well Spent
▪ Employer Guide to Wellness in the
Workplace
• Wellness Topics Employee Survey
• Wellness at Work flier






Organizational commitment can maximize engagement and outcome
Multi-year program helps build a culture of health and wellness awareness and participation
•
• Enhances readiness of the population for change
•
•
Helps foster level of trust and confidence in programs
Can increase levels of intervention and engagement
Program Components
Over time
Member Promotional Campaign
Health Promotion & Wellness Topics
My Health Advantage
Step wise approach can build momentum based on success in prior phases
Multiple modalities provide greater accessibility and drive participation
Incentive based programs (rewards), when permitted, can provide additional encouragement to increase engagement and participation levels
Worksite Wellness
Healthy Lifestyles
Incentives

• Every company is different, so find out which wellness programs can mean the most to your employees!
 Take a look at your demographics
 Look for the best ways to communicate to your employees. And don’t forget about family members and dependents at home because a positive impact with them can also lower medical costs.
 Evaluate HRA data to the extent appropriate
 Implement an employee survey
 Work with your Empire Account team to analyze your claims information to find trends, as appropriate
 Consider environmental changes (no smoking policy, bike racks)
The more information you have, the better your plan will be.
Always follow confidentiality and privacy rules when analyzing data.

• Helps you and senior leaders start putting a wellness plan into action – step by step
▪ Build a wellness team
▪ Lay out a specific plan for your wellness campaign
▪ Set specific goals and objectives
▪ Develop a timeline
▪ Delegate roles and responsibilities
▪ Create a budget
▪
Promote health and wellness ideas
▪ Begin communicating directly to employees
▪ Set up a wellness fair
▪ Evaluate your results as appropriate

• Encourage healthy behaviors for your employees even if you don’t have a robust wellness budget.
• Here are some best practices:
▪ Executive support
▪ Build a Wellness Team
▪ Understand what health issues matter most to your employees
▪ Provide Access to Discounts and Health Improvement programs
▪ Ongoing Communication
▪ Create Healthy Competition
▪ Measure Outcomes

 CDH & PPO/Cost-efficient HMOs
 Wellness programs
 Introduction of Company paid wellness credits paid out as premium credits in the following year
Company Wellness
Credit:
$400 /associate;
$400 /spouse
Increased Company Wellness Credit
Propose: $tbd /associate:
$tbd /spouse
Results
(Be in Healthy
Range/Show
Improvement)
Company Wellness
Credit:
$200 /associate
Participation
(Programs + Tobacco-
Free or Tobacco
Cessation Program)
Participation
(Programs + Tobacco-
Free or Tobacco
Cessation Program)
Awareness
(Screening + Health
Assessment)
Awareness
(Screening + Health
Assessment)
Awareness
(Screening + Health
Assessment)
Year 1
Year 2 Year 3

• When it comes time to size up your wellness program, you’re going to want proof that your plan is working and how it may be affecting your company’s bottom line.
 Track attendance of events and competition participation
 Conduct pre/post surveys to determine the value of the event and if people learned something new or plan to use the information
 Has your wellness plan improved attendance and reduced sick leave usage and employee turnover?
 Compare pre/post aggregate program results, biometric screening results, or health assessment results
 If you are an ASO group, analyze claim costs and impacts from previous benefit changes.
 Communicate the results to participants, company leadership, and your
Empire rep!

ROI can be difficult to measure, so it’s best to take a comprehensive look at programs to understand the full benefits
▪ Engagement/Participation Rates
▪ Employee Satisfaction & Retention
▪ Improved Health
▪ Biometrics and Clinical Measures
▪ Enhanced Productivity
▪ Reduced Absenteeism
▪ Reduced Benefit expense (Workers Comp. & Disability included)
▪ ROI

• Client:
 5250 employees, Primary manufacturing -- specializing in marketing and publishing services
 Multiple locations, employees include off-site sales teams and seasonal workers
• Worksite Wellness Strategy:
 Offer Health Screenings: Total Cholesterol, HDL, LDL, Triglycerides,
Blood Glucose, Blood Pressure, BMI
 Held 30 on-site events. Added physician fax back options to reach offsite employees
• Employees received financial incentives for participation in addition to monthly premium contribution based on scoring results.
•
Email, communications from on-site coordinators, letters to the home
.
*Based on actual client outside New York State. Example only. Wellness-based financial incentives may not be available for insured groups.

(=2504/5250)
•
Screening Results & Satisfaction:**
 37.2% of participants had an obese BMI***
•
(compared to 34.1% of American adults 2003
– 2006)
 8.1% of participants had high total cholesterol***
• (compared to 16.3% of American adults 2003 - 2006)
 8.1% of participants had high blood pressure***
•
(compared to the 2003 - 2006 U.S. average of 17.9%)
 98% of the attendees found the health screening useful
 86% of the attendees learned something new about their health
 90% said they would share the information they learned with their doctor
 89% said health screening motivated them to make at least one healthy behavior change
*Based on actual client outside New York State. Example only. In all cases, results depend on various factors and cannot be guaranteed. Wellness-based financial incentives may not be available for insured groups.
**2,325 satisfaction surveys were returned (return rate of 93.8%). Percentages include the number of members who “agreed” or “strongly agreed” with the statements.
*** Compare to the most recent 2003-2006 U.S. estimates by the Centers for Disease Control and
Prevention (CDC).

Client:
 3,922 employees, financial institution-locally owned, multiple locations across two states
 65% female, average age 41
Lifestyle Management Strategy:
 Launched Healthy Lifestyles Online & Telephonic in January 2008
 Encouraged participation by adding incentives
Results
 22% of enrollees participated in lifestyle campaigns, which is the highest among benchmark
 $900K = total estimated savings for health care and productivity in 2010
 Estimated $2.8 million saving from 2008 – 2010
*Based on actual client outside New York State. Example only. In all cases, results depend on various factors and cannot be guaranteed. Wellness-based financial incentives may not be available for insured groups.

Telephonic Coaching
Risk Reduction
2010 program year: enrollees reported a total of 994 health risks and indicated they improved or eliminated 36% of those risks.
2009 program year: 1,119 health risks were reported and enrollees reported they improved or eliminated 33% of those risks.
2008 program year: 2,541 health risks were reported and participants reported they improved or eliminated 29% of those risks.
*Based on actual client outside New York State. Example only. In all cases, results depend on various factors and cannot be guaranteed. Wellness-based financial incentives may not be available for insured groups.

Once you have wellness programs for your employees, you can have a greater impact on future health care costs
 For people with pre-diabetes, lifestyle changes, including a 5% –7% weight loss and at least 150 minutes of physical activity per week, can reduce the rate of onset of type 2 diabetes by 58% 1
 A 1% reduction in health risks such as weight, blood pressure, glucose, and cholesterol risk factors estimated to save $83 to $103 annually in medical costs per person for a sample population 2
 For every gram of salt that Americans reduce in their diets daily, a quarter of a million fewer new heart disease cases and over 200,000 fewer deaths could potentially be prevented over a decade 3
NOTE: In all cases, results depend on various factors and cannot be guaranteed.
1 National Diabetes Education Program Provider toolkit Your Game Plan for preventing type 2 diabetes 2003
2 Henke, R.M., Carls, G.S., Short, M.E., Pei, X., Wang, S., Moley, S., Sullivan, M., and Goetzel, R.Z. (2010)
The Relationship between Health Risks and Health and Productivity Costs Among Employees at Pepsi
Bottling Group. Journal of Occupational & Environmental Medicine, 52(5), 519 –527.
3 American Heart Association’s 49th Annual Conference on Cardiovascular Disease Epidemiology and
Prevention 2009

 June 19 th - Wellness on a Dime: Low or No cost Wellness tools to help you build your Wellness Strategy
 July 17 th - Amp it Up: What you can do to get your employees engaged: Employer success stories and Open
Enrollment opportunities
 August 14 th - Walking the Walk: How to plan a health fair and other on-site wellness events
 September 18 th - Free Wellness Tools on empireblue.com: Online resources to help employees manage their health stop smoking and lose weight
Sign up today! http://group.empireblue.com/360healthNY

If you would like to ask a question to our presenter, please type in the Q&A box to the right side of your screen and send to “all panelists.”
Services provided by Empire HealthChoice HMO, Inc. and Empire HealthChoice Assurance, Inc., licensees of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, an association of independent Blue Cross and
Blue Shield plans. Not for further distribution.

Legal Disclaimer: The appropriateness and legal permissibility of the wellness programs and strategies discussed in this presentation should be confirmed independently by groups before undertaking. Not all programs described are currently available for NY insured market. Wellness-based financial incentives may not be available. State law and regulations may apply. Federal rules relating to wellness programs offered by ASO and insured groups also may apply. All results described are for purposes of example only. Actual program results will depend on various factors and cannot be guaranteed.