Enjoy these health and wellness articles which were written by industry leading wellness experts / wellness consultants to assist you in learning more about corporate wellness programs / employee wellness programs.
One goal of corporate wellness programs is to improve employee health and productivity. Senior management, however, also want to know if these corporate wellness programs save money. A typical question we're asked is "Are these corporate wellness programs worth their cost?" To answer this question researchers reviewed the literature to summarize corporate wellness ROI findings related to health and wellness programs.
The following types of programs were reviewed to determine corporate wellness ROI:
- Health Promotion / Health Management / Wellness Programs
- Self-Care Programs / Demand Management
- Disease Management Programs
Numerous corporate wellness ROI studies were found, but a wide range of corporate wellness ROI estimates were noted (from $1.40 - $13.00 in savings per dollar spent on these programs).
The Primary Aim of Corporate Wellness is to Improve HealthThe primary goal of all of the corporate wellness programs studied was to improve employee health and productivity (not just to save money). Researchers found that corporate wellness program funders often required a “business case” justification for program continuation and enhancement. As a result the need to demonstrate a positive corporate wellness ROI was still very strong.
- Identify well-conducted, rigorous studies that exemplify best practices in corporate wellness ROI analyses.
- Document the range of corporate wellness ROI estimates found in these studies.
- Comment on factors influencing corporate wellness ROI.
- Studies were extracted from article reference lists and credible databases.
- Only studies with strong quasi-experimental or true experimental designs were considered.
- Cost data could NOT be self-reported.
- To be considered the research methods used in the studies had to be appropriate (I.e., large sample sizes and long study periods).
Corporate health management programs often include:
- smoking cessation programs
- health risk assessment,
- stress reduction programs,
- disease screening,
- exercise/fitness facilities/programs,
- high risk intervention programs,
- nutrition education,
Corporate Wellness ROI studies of health management programs have been conducted for:
- Tenneco
- General Mills
- Chevron Corporation
- City of Mesa, Arizona
- General Motors
- Johnson & Johnson
- Pacific Bell
- Proctor and Gamble
ROI estimates in these nine studies ranged from $1.40 - $4.90 in savings per dollar spent on these programs. Median ROI was $3 in benefits per dollar spent on program. Sample sizes ranged from 500 - 50,000 participants in these studies.
Demand management programs expand use of self-care and give beneficiaries greater control of their health care usage. Components include:
- self-care books
- 1-800 nurse call-in or other telephone information services
- counseling services
- newsletters
- seminars
- other educational services
ROI studies of demand management programs were conducted for:
- Rhode Island Group Health Association (2 studies)
- Blue Cross of California
- United Healthcare
- Five California counties
- Group Health Inc.
Corporate wellness ROI estimates in these six studies ranged from $2.20 - $13.00 in savings per dollar spent. Median corporate wellness ROI was about $4.50 in benefits per dollar spent. Study sample sizes ranged from 460 - 5,647 participants in these studies.
Disease management programs target disease conditions for which there are effective, evidence based practice guidelines. Components of disease management programs include:
- educational programs for patients or doctors
- counseling services
- care programs based on evidence-based clinical practice guidelines
- incentives for appropriate utilization of health care services
ROI studies of disease management programs were conducted for:
- Henry Ford Hospital (asthma)
- Spohn Memorial Hospital (diabetes)
- United Behavioral Health (mental health)
ROI estimates in these three studies ranged from $7.30 to $10.40 in benefits per dollar spent on these programs. Median ROI was $9.00 in benefits per dollar spent. Sample sizes ranged from 176 - 1,671 participants in these studies.
Some programs combined elements of health, demand, and disease management programs. Key features included:
- health risk appraisal surveys to identify people at high risk for poor health
- triage into risk-appropriate intervention programs
- tailored communication and health education
- self-care materials
- appropriate follow-up to monitor progress
ROI studies of multiple component programs were conducted for:
- The Bank of America
- California Public Employee Retirement System
- Citibank, N.A.
Corporate wellness ROI estimates in these three studies ranged from $5.50 - $6.50 in savings per dollar spent on these programs. Median Corporate Wellness ROI was $6.00 in savings per dollar spent. ROI for Citibank study dropped from $6.50 to $4.70 per dollar spent when subjects who died during study period were excluded from analyses. Sample sizes ranged from 4,700 - 21,700 participants in these studies.
- Corporate Wellness ROI estimates ranged from $1.40 - $13.00 in savings per dollar spent on these health, demand, and disease management programs.
- Wide range of Corporate Wellness ROI estimates may be due to variety in program design features.
- Maximum health impact may come from programs directed at improving organizational health, employee absence patterns, worker disability, and safety. Although most costly, these are likely to also be most cost-beneficial.
- In general, some of the more expensive corporate wellness programs produced lower ROIs, compared to less expensive corporate wellness programs.
- A notable exception, though, was the disease management program for mental health that was organized by United Behavioral Health (UBH) for Pacific Bell.
- Although the UBH program was one of the most expensive, it also produced a high ROI ($10.40 in benefits per dollar spent on the program).
Corporate Wellness programs that produced negative ROIs are less likely to be published in the literature. As a result, corporate wellness ROI estimates noted in this review may overstate the true average impact.
Only a few corporate wellness studies used inflation-adjustments and discounting procedures to control for the changing value of money over time. Thus, costs and benefits in out-years may be overstated.
The range of ROI findings underscores the requirement to closely examine the needs of the target population and introduce interventions that are appropriate and targeted for that population. Organizations should assess the value derived from their Health and Productivity Management programs. Rigorous evaluations should not only focus on improvements in health and reductions in risk but also on return on investment.