Employers and Wellness Pulling Back or Pushing On 

Employee well-being programs have become a mainstay in employers’ overall benefit offerings. Most large employers offer programs designed to support health and well-being, and each year our National Survey of Employer-Sponsored Health Plans finds that more are contracting optional and niche services from health plans or specialty vendors, as opposed to offering just their plan’s standard services or in-house initiatives (48% did so  in 2015, up from 30% in 2012). That’s why we were surprised to see a recent Wall Street Journal article suggesting that employers may be taking a step back from wellness programs. The article pointed to SHRM’s 2016 Employee Benefits Survey, which found that certain wellness program elements have decreased in prevalence, notably onsite seasonal flu vaccinations and 24-hour nurse lines. But although certain services are being offered less, the study reports that more employers are increasing wellness offerings (45%) than decreasing them (19%). It also highlights that employers are becoming more strategic in their program offerings; if employers are taking a ‘step back’, they’re doing so to take stock of their current offerings and evaluate what works best for their workforce.

Other developments in the health care ecosystem may account for changes in wellness program offerings. As access to retail health clinics continues to expand, making flu shots easier and cheaper to obtain than with a primary care physician, some employers may pull back on this offering and dedicate those budget dollars to other well-being resources. And our survey found sharp growth in offerings of telemedicine in 2015 (from 18% to 30% of large employers) and advocacy services (from 52% to 56%), both of which may be taking the place of some previously offered 24-hour nurse lines.

Employee well-being programs will continue to evolve as employers assess their offerings, whether based on participation levels, employee surveys or ROI analysis. Health care market developments and innovations that arise will also impact well-being offerings, but it’s clear that these programs have become an essential part of the American workplace and are here to stay. There was lot of buzz earlier this year over a study published in JOEM (which we’ve written about here) linking robust health and well-being programs with better stock performance – perhaps because the findings resonated with many sponsors of high-performing programs who have been hoping for a better way to measure the value of their investments in employee health.

Go to full article: www.wsj.com