Wellness Programs Cons

In order to develop a wellness program there are several things that should be taken into consideration. First, you must develop your own personal perception of what you feel wellness is and how to stay well. Secondly, you must know what the pros and cons are for being fit. Then finally you must set immediate goals to obtain your level of wellness. The main thing you need to keep in mind is that developing a healthy life style early in life is a key factor in preventing diseases and improving one quality of life.

An employee can help reduce the cost of health cost by doing several things. There has been an outcry from organizations due to the rising number of competitors with high expenses catering for health benefits during employment periods and on retiring. The employee can be of great help by being participative in the programs set by their employers to benefit more from other advantages far from health costs (Kerzner, 2013). Some of the choices an employee may consider to help control health costs are by boosting consumerism, use technology to manage benefits, and indulge in fitness and health programs.

Solutions: Business health insurance is a major cost of doing business, especially for small companies as groceries. With premiums soaring, many small business owners are asking their employees to shoulder more of the financial burden or cutting benefits entirely. Grocery health insurance may take a huge chunk out of the revenue, but benefits often attract better employees and help retain existing workers. Satisfied, healthy employees are more likely to help your business grow. As a mediator that struggling to provide health insurance, the following solutions can reduce the small business health insurance benefits and costs.

The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) agrees that the cost of health insurance is a high ranking concern for business owners. Every year, they conduct a study to see what the top general concerns facing small business owners. From the beginning of the fiscal year of 1986 to the present, every year has concluded that the cost of health insurance is the top burden facing small business owners in America. (Wade, Holly Pg 24, table 5). Another important factor to consider are lost capacity due to employee illnesses or unemployment. Brad Plumer of the Washington post recently did an interesting study to determine the amount of money lost due to inactivity at the workplace. Including businesses in both the public and private sectors, Plumer estimates that over $1.8 trillion dollars per year in lost productivity at the workplace. While the Post acknowledged the idea of lost productivity is not a clear science and can be overvalued this is nonetheless a huge amount of money wasted each year.

The National Federation of Independent Business (NFIB) has repeatedly stated that the cost of health insurance is a high ranking concern for small business owners. Every year they conduct a study to see what the top general concerns facing small business owners. In each fiscal year since 1986 the cost of health insurance has been shown to be the top burden facing small business owners in America. (Wade, Holly Pg 24, table 5). Another important factor to consider are business which suffer from lost capacity due to employee illnesses or unemployment cost. Brad Plumer of the Washington Post recently conducted a study to determine the amount of money lost due to inactivity at the workplace. Including businesses in both the public and private sectors, Plumer estimates that over $1.8 trillion dollars per year in wasted each year as a result of lost productivity at the workplace (Plumer, Brad). While Mr. Plumer acknowledged the idea of lost productivity is not a clear science and can be overvalued this is nonetheless a huge amount of money wasted each year.

One of the biggest problems small employers face today is the steadily rising costs of health coverage for its employees. This paper covers how health care premiums have risen in double digits for the past five consecutive years, how many small businesses are forced to drop health care coverage for their employees because of the out of control costs, and what small businesses are doing to control the costs and still offer health care coverage to their employees.

Small businesses are an integral part of job creation and of driving the US economy. However, the current healthcare system has severely disadvantaged small business in comparison to the larger companies. According to research, small businesses with fewer than 20 employees accounted for approximately 18% of private sector jobs in 2008, but about 25% of net employment growth from 1992 to 2007 (Arvantes, 2010). Small businesses also rates highly in terms of jobs creation, in start-ups, as well as being a key source economic growth and of innovation. Historically, small businesses have encountered numerous challenges to offering affordable insurance coverage to

About 171 million people or two-thirds of Americans that have health insurance have it through their employers (Carmen DeNavas-Walt, Bernadette D. Proctor and Jessica C. Smith). Given that a majority of employees receive their health care benefits through their employers, it could be beneficial to look at how the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act effects businesses, specially the small businesses. Changes to this act need to be made to make the cost of coverage affordable for both businesses and employees while maintaining fairness.

Houston Methodist knows that having a great Wellness program is crucial to any business. They use lifestyle modifications to help improve the health of their employees. Having a healthy work environment, and great employee incentives leads to greater production from your staff. Houston Methodist has invested time and money into the program and it is paying off. This is a great model for any business to follow that is trying to get there wellness program off the ground. They make sure there is something for

Wellness in the workplace needs to be taken seriously by all employers, and employees. There has been evidence that making sure employees eat healthier leads to lower call out rates and more savings on health plans. In an article in Employee Benefits magazine it states that “Wellness management does not need to be complicated, or costly. A few simple steps could help to mitigate long-term problems, such as introducing early intervention activities that red flag cases identified via an absence reporting mechanism, the proactive management of musculo-skeletal conditions and stress, introducing a smoking cessation program or running regular health wellbeing days. “Workplace wellness as a concept has been used extensively in recent years by management in business and industry, health professionals, fitness experts, and others. This is a policy that should be implanted in all jobs. Wellness may not

This will allow for increased spending in other areas of our company, creating a more productive budget. In addition, participation in the Wellness Program will provide employees that are able to work more often and more efficiently. This will undoubtedly increase productivity and decrease turnover. With 39,000 employees in the United States and 30 foreign nations, it is imperative that we maintain healthy and productive employees. Because of these significant benefits, it is crucial that we maintain and improve participation in the program. However, there are several concerns that may hinder such participation: 1. Despite Whirlpool’s guarantee of confidentiality, many employees do not trust the company with such private information. a. Employees have expressed their fear in the use of the information. They are concerned that their health status may negatively affect their position in the company. b. Although it is assured that no records are kept, employees fear the leak of private health information to their peers. If information was leaked, they fear the effects on their reputation and social standing within the company. 2. In order for the new addition to our program to be successful, it is important that we stress the benefits to our current employees. a. If our employees do not

Research indicates that employers can increase employee retention, increase employee productivity, and reduce employee healthcare costs by implementing a workplace wellness program.

Setting the stage for starting a workplace-based wellness program will be the most difficult part. The program can be achieved by getting upper management support and forming a wellness/health services unit to help plan, promote, implement and maintain the program.

Health and wellness in the workplace is crucial to business success. Increasingly, it is recognized that the workplace itself has a powerful affect on people’s health. When people are satisfied with their job, they are more productive and tend to be healthier. When employees feel that the environment at work is negative, they feel stressed. Stress has a large impact on employee mental and physical health, and in turn, on productivity. Companies that promote healthy lifestyle habits for employees to improve their health, often take the success of the company to heart and are likely to be absent less often for health related reasons.

Small businesses are contrived to give all of their employees health care due to Medicare. Through the terms of ObamaCare, small businesses are compelled into closing their doors because of all the hand outs they have to get to their employees. When small business begin to become more successful and make more money, Medicare takes their profits away and gives it to people who don't really need it. ObamaCare and Medicare have both taught ignorant Americans to not get a job because they can get the same amount of money in the form of a hand out instead of actually working for it and contributing to the economy. The tax breaks for small firms and other factors are reliant by how much small businesses spend on health coverage (Harrison). Tax