Health care and businesses have been two of the dominant topics over the past year, and rightfully so. Companies are trying to recover from The Great Recession, and the passage of healthcare legislation means a dramatic change in a sector that represents over 17 percent of the U.S. economy. With most major employers deeply involved in their employees healthcare coverage, corporate wellness programs are becoming increasingly valuable as successful programs have been proven to improve employee health and reduce healthcare costs.
Costs are always a concern for businesses, and here corporate wellness programs have been proven highly effective in lowering them. Studies conducted by the University of Michigans Health Management Research Center showed savings for an individual company of $80 million dollars after the implementation of an effective wellness program. Other companies and businesses meanwhile saw tens to hundreds of thousands of dollars in annual savings through increased employee productivity due to their corporate wellness programs.
These companies
wellness programs are similar in the services they offer, each company needs a program tailored to its size and needs. Assessments specific to each company need to be done by wellness program specialists who can target areas where employees need to improve their health and determine what programs should be created in order to reach company health goals and improve employee wellness.
Companies should take it upon themselves to make employee health a priority through an effective wellness program that will only not improve the health of employees, but also improve the health of the company through decreased healthcare costs, increased levels of employee motivation and morale, and higher levels of employee productivity. As the economy recovers and companies become more stable, a satisfied, healthy workforce will become more important than ever, further increasing the importance or
