Insights as to how employees and their dependents perceive health care is discovered in a new survey released by the National Business Group and performed by Hewitt. In order to plan their company health care strategies, it is essential to understand the results of the survey. Help for prescription medicines is high on the list.
In spite of the fact that employees say they might know how to get in good physical shape, many aren’t taking action to do so. Most (84%) believe making intelligent choices in daily life leads to excellent overall health, and about three-quarters (72%) think good health is a consequence of getting regular preventive care. Only half of the workers think they do a great or good job of eating healthy, while less than half (46%) reported doing a great or good job of exercising on a regular basis. To assist with the expensive prices of medication, most workers surveyed rated prescription program assistance very high.
Participation in health programs is low, but satisfaction is high. Involvement in a lot of employer provided health programs isn’t as high as many businesses would like to see, even though employees and their dependents report that they know what they need to do to get and stay healthy. Biometric screenings are the most popular programs with online health information tools and health risk questionnaires following closely. Stress management programs and employee assistance programs (EAPs) were the least popular, with just nine percent participation in each. For workers that have dependent coverage, a prescription program was the number one satisfying benefit.
Financial motivation is a strong factor in participation but non financial, internal motivators can be just as effective. Many employers presume that offering cash incentives in exchange for participation will generate the best results and incent employees to participate in health care programs. Citing that it is “the right thing to do”, close to half of all workers surveyed would complete a health risk questionnaire Twenty-nine percent would participate in a HRQ for an incentive and almost the same number would complete it if there was a penalty. In addition, 44% of the employees surveyed said they would be willing to take part in a wellness program offered by their employer because “it is the right thing to do”.
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