Healthy Employees are Important to the Health of Your Business
Health and Wellness in a Time
of Healthcare Reform =
Wellness Defined
A process of being aware of
and actively working
toward better health.
Awareness
If people are going to get healthy,
then they need to have a precise
understanding of their current
health status.
Action
“Act as if what you do makes a difference.
It does.”
Healthy employees are more
productive and have lower
healthcare costs.
That’s important because
healthy employees can mean
a “healthy” bottom line for
your business.
Question 1
Why Wellness Now?
Obesity Trends Among U.S. Adults
BRFSS
1990
1999
2010
(*BMI 30, or about 30 lbs.
overweight for 5’4” person)
No Data
<10%
10%–14%
15%–19%
20%–24%
25%–29%
≥30%
Iceberg Phenomenon
Visible Cost
Direct Medical Costs
Medical
Pharmaceutical
Indirect Costs
Presenteeism
Short-term Disability
Long-term Disability
Absenteeism
Workers Compensation
Non-Visible Cost
Pay me now, or pay me later
$85
OR
$85,000
Question 2
Why Wellness
at the Worksite?
Reason #1Household
activities
Eating / Drinking
1.1
1.1
5%
5%
Caring for others
1.3
5%
Other
1.5
6%
Sleeping
7.7
32%
Working
8.7
36%
Leisure and
Sports
2.6
11%
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics
Average Hours per Work
Week Spent at Work
 With the majority of Americans spending
more of their waking hours at work, what
better place to start than with worksite
wellness.
The typical U.S. adult over the age of 18 has
seven (7) chronic health conditions.
Reason # 2
Healthy employees are more
productive and have lower
healthcare costs. That’s
important because healthy
employees can mean a “healthy”
bottom line for your business.
Portion of Healthcare Dollars
Spending on Wellness
<10%
Wellness
90+%
Total Value of Health
High Indirect Costs
Direct
Indirect
2010 - Most Common Ways
Employers Manage Healthcare Trends
70%
60%
51%
56%
58%
60%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
0%
Increase costs
to employees
Change plan
designs
Utilize wellness
programs
Employee
education
Source: ERC Healthcare and Wellness Practices Survey
2010 Wellness Trends
80%
68%
70%
59%
60%
57%
50%
40%
30%
20%
10%
24%
9%
0%
Average of
$14/month
Charge
tobacco
users
Plan to
Have
Have
implement
wellness
incentives
some
activities in in place
wellness
place
activities
Unsure if
wellness
reduces
costs
Source: ERC Healthcare and Wellness Practices Survey
Step One:
Be a Champion of Health & Wellness
Inform
Your Management
Define
Management’s Role
Train
Management
Step Two:
Change Your Culture – Make it Healthy
Assess Your Culture
Healthy Workplace Tour & Culture Assessment
 Activity level
 Nutrition habits
 Campus layout
Health Risk Assessment
 Personal Wellness Profile
 Health Screenings
 Healthy You! visit
Change Your Culture
Be Tobacco-free
Program Services:
3 fully-covered physician visits for counseling
Prescribed nicotine replacement therapy / medication
BCBSMS Quitline
90-day coverage
Blue Cross & Blue Shield of
Mississippi “be smoke-free” Program
Program Results:
90
80
70
83
83
60
50
40
42
30
20
24
10
13
0
Enrolled
Triggered
Quit 1 Month
Quit 3 Months
Quit 6 Months +
Blue Cross & Blue Shield of
Mississippi “be smoke-free” Program
Program Results:
25%
20%
15%
4%
2006
5%
2005
5%
0%
5%
8%
5%
12%
10%
2007
2008
2009
2010
Change Your Culture
Assess Your Employees
HRA Program Components:
 Lifestyle questionnaire
 Annual health screenings
 50% participation
 Understand employees’ health
needs & interests
 Personalized Health Report
 Executive Report
Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi
Employee Results 2006-2010
Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi
Health & Wellness Program Success
99%
99%
99%
99%
2005
2006
2007
2008
2009
100%
97%
60%
75%
80%
84%
100%
40%
20%
0%
2003
2004
2010
Change Your Culture
Inform and Educate Your Employees
Employees have a direct impact on your health plan
 Use benefits wisely
 Health and lifestyle choices impact plan costs
 Access to Nurse Advice Line
 Access to Wellness Center Discount Program
 Annual Healthy You! wellness exam
 Access to tobacco-cessation
 Monthly health & wellness information
Step Three
Promote Healthy You!
Healthy You! Wellness
Benefit
Set a goal of 100% of
employees get their Healthy
You! visit
Healthy You! Program
Focused Risk Factors
 Cholesterol
 Glucose
 Blood pressure
 Weight/BMI
 Tobacco use
Know
Your Numbers
Manage
Your Risks
Blue Cross & Blue Shield of Mississippi
Healthy You! Utilization
(covered employees)
If employees know their numbers,
they can manage their risks
Tangible Results:
Employee Health Impacts the
Health of Your Business
Our Per Member Per Year
(PMPY) costs are 14.2%
less for employees in our
Wellness Incentive
Program.
Employee Health Impacts the
Health of Your Business
Tangible results: Time away from work
3.5
3
2.5
2
1.5
1
0.5
0
2006
2007
2008
Did not receive WIP
2009
Received WIP
2010
Step Four
 Quarterly activities
 Management in-service
 High participation
 Timely feedback
Healthy Workplace Activities
 “be smoke-free” Program
 Healthy You! promotion
 Eat Healthy Challenge
 be healthy! Challenge
 LGWM worksite challenge
 Be stress-free activity
Step Five:
Provide Incentives for
Healthy Behavior
Carefully plan your incentives for
long-term behavior change
Time at work to participate in activities
Extra day off for the Healthy You! visit
Monetary incentives
Prize drawings
Provide Incentives for
Healthy Behavior
 Participation during work
 Activity options
 Achievement recognition
 Competition
 Financial rewards
 Benefit differentials
Return on Wellness

Lower healthcare costs

Fewer employee sick days

Reduction in workers’ comp costs

Lower disability management costs

Improved morale

Reduced turnover

Lives saved!
Return on Wellness
$7.00
$5.93
$6.00
$5.00
$4.00
$3.00
$2.00
$1.00
$1.00
$-
Wellness investment
ROI per dollar
Source: Employee and Executive Wellness Solutions
Indirect Return on Wellness
20.0%
12.5%
10.0%
0.0%
-10.0%
-20.0%
-30.0%
-28.0%
-26.0%
-30.0%
-40.0%
Reduced sick
Reduced
Reduced
leave
healthcare costs Workers' Comp
and Disability
claims
Increased
employee
productivity
Source: Employee and Executive Wellness Solutions
Healthy Workplace Timeline
Month 1
- Commitment letter
- Healthy Workplace Tour
Month 3
Memo from Champion to
employees about Healthy
Workplace
Month 2
In-service with
Management/Wellness
Committee & Champion
Month 5
Worksite Wellness
Activities begin
Month 4
-Employees complete PWP with
health screening/health fair
- PWP results to employees
- Executive report to wellness team