Advantages of Corporate Health Promotion Initiatives

Advantages of Corporate Health Promotion Programs: Easy to Find

Employer’s are learning that Corporate Health Promotion Initiatives is an effective way to increase productivity, improve worker health, decrease medical costs and reduce rates of absence.

A report published in 2003 by the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) highlighted how important it is for corporations to incorporate Corporate Health Promotion Initiatives as part of their company strategy. The report asserts that chronic diseases which are largely preventable place a heavy toll on employer, including lower productivity and higher health insurance costs.

The Department of Health and Human Services estimates that $1.66 trillion was spent on healthcare in 2003 and it attributes a majority of those costs to chronic diseases and conditions such as heart disease, diabetes, obesity and asthma. Sadly, the money allocated for preventing or controlling these conditions is negligible.

In a recent article, American Cancer Society CEO John Seffrin reported two thirds of cancer deaths in the United States could be prevented through lifestyle changes in diet, exercise, cancer testing and “especially” tobacco use. A well-designed Corporate Health Promotion Initiatives initiative serves the best interests of staff members and corporations alike.

Advantages of Wellness Progams: Return On Investment

Ron Goetzel, a nationally recognized expert in the field of health management, data analysis and applied research, said in a recent interview that with an investment of $100 to $150 per worker per year in Corporate Health Promotion Programs, an employer can expect an average ROI of approximately $3 for every $1
invested ($300 to $450 savings per worker per year).  Goetzel says, however, that these returns are not typically realized until two to three years into the Corporate Health Promotion Program.

Advantages of Wellness Progams: Tax Breaks

Sen. Tom Harkin (D-Iowa) has been an outspoken proponent in seeking legislative solutions for a strained medical system.

“As a nation, we have a ‘sick care’ system that is focused on helping individuals after they get sick, rather than a ‘health care’ system which focuses on keeping healthy individuals healthy,” he says.

Harkin introduced the Healthy Lifestyle and Prevention (HeLP) America Act of 2004. One of the initiatives under Title II – Healthier Communities and Workplaces, provides tax credits to corporations that offer broad-based programs to promote worker health and grants for small employer.

Advantages of Wellness Progams: Getting Started

Implementing a Corporate Health Promotion Initiatives can be accomplished with simple, low-cost strategies.

• Offer incentives for participation.
• Establish a wellness informational campaign.
• Schedule wellness seminars on diabetes, nutrition, exercise and cholesterol.
• Establish initiatives such as fitness, sleep diary, tobacco use cessation and injury prevention.
• Offer onsite chair massages or simple stretching exercises to do at the desk.
• Alter vending machine options to offer healthier, low-fat snacks and drinks.
• Actively promote worker participation in all Corporate Health Promotion Programs.

A successful Corporate Health Promotion Initiative can boost employer morale, enhance productivity, reduce organizational conflict, attract superior workers and decrease the rate of worker turnover. The case for beginning a Corporate Health Promotion Initiative is well worth the effort.