Podcast: Creating a Culture of Health by Engaging the C-Suite and Employees to Promote Better Health
November 15, 2007 - Health Information Network HealthSound’s Podcasts
Gregg Lehman, president and CEO of HealthFitness, discusses the levels of "C-Suite support," employing wellness champs in the workplace, preventing illness versus managing existing illness and the impact C-Suite endorsement can have on an initiative.
The Future Of Employer-Provided Health Care Benefits
December 2007 - Employee Benefit Research Institute
The “What’s New” issue focuses on the connections between health care reform and employer-provided health care benefits and the increasing interest among employers in taking part in future initiatives. This first item reviews a recent Issue Brief from the Employee Benefit Research Institute (EBRI) on whether employers “have reached a ‘tipping point’ where they will stop offering health benefits…” EBRI notes, "The employers interviewed for this study tend to agree that if one major employer were to drop health benefits, others would follow. And they tend to agree that public policy changes, such as the erosion or elimination of ERISA (federal) preemption of state insurance regulation, could result in the complete elimination of employer support for a voluntary employment-based health benefits system
How Employers Save on Health Care: Auditing Workers
January 2008 - The Houston Chronicle
Meet the insurance audit. Increasing numbers of employers are requesting personal documents to ensure that all the dependents in their health care plans are entitled to coverage. With insurance costs rising faster than inflation for a decade, they want to verify that you're actually married to the person receiving spousal benefits, or that your 19-year-old son really is enrolled as a full-time student. If you can't produce proof, the dependent loses coverage.
Aetna Research Identifies Four Keys To Success For Consumer-Directed Health Plans
January 31, 2008 - Aetna Press Center
Five-year study of 1.6 million Aetna members proves that sustained savings are possible through appropriate mix of culture change, education and benefits design
HARTFORD, Conn. — January 31, 2008 — Aetna (NYSE: ΑET) today released the results of a five-year study of health care claims and utilization for members of its Aetna HealthFund® consumer-directed plans. The study of 1.6 million Aetna members (205,000 in an Aetna HealthFund plan) identifies the four keys to success that help employers succeed in implementing a consumer-directed benefits strategy. They are:
- Fostering a culture of health care consumerism among all employees, beginning with senior executives
- Implementing a focused employee communication and education campaign
- Offering wellness programs and incentives for healthy behaviors, as well as 100 percent coverage for preventive care
- Carefully constructing a benefits package that includes appropriate levels of member responsibility
