The benefits of employee wellness programs have been touted in recent years as money-savers for companies concerned about the rising costs of healthcare. However, it’s sometimes hard to quantify just how much organizations stand to save.
A group of businesses in the Kansas City region recently announced that they were able to avoid $11 million in healthcare costs over three years after implementing several initiatives in the workplace aimed at disease prevention and tailored employee health benefits.
Some of the interventions these 15 companies used were increasing access to health information, decreasing obstacles to preventative care, encouraging workers to reduce their risks of illness and improving treatment options for chronic diseases.
“By implementing a value-based approach to health benefit design, this group of employers has been able to better address worker health and productivity while also lowering overall healthcare costs,” said Christine Wilson, president and CEO of the Mid-America Coalition on Health Care.
Administrators estimated that $194 was saved per employee as a result of chronic illness prevention.
Since stress is a leading cause of chronic disease, this suggests that employee wellness programs aimed at managing tension may help reduce workplace stress and cut costs stemming from employee health benefits.
