Vol. 38, No. 18

3-13-2007
By: Adam King

New health program pays back

Monetary incentive encourages employees

A new university incentive program will financially reward employees who attempt to stay healthy.

Under the Your Plan for Health 2007 Incentive Program, faculty and staff can earn a maximum of 125 points by taking part in activities such as nutrition counseling education classes, having vision and dental screenings, exercising and being tobacco-free or participating in tobacco cessation workshops.

The points an employee earns will be converted into an equal dollar amount (125 points = $125, minus payroll taxes) and be paid out in November. Complete information on the program and registration can be found at yourplanforhealth.com on March 26, when the program kicks off.

Ohio State has had an annual average health care cost increase of 10.5 percent over the past 10 years. The goal of the incentive program is to lower that to no more than 7 percent per year over the next five years while still maintaining quality benefits, according to Larry Lewellen, associate vice president for Human Resources.

“By achieving this, the university would save an estimated $7 million the first year and free more than $30 million by the fifth year,” Lewellen said, adding that the incentive program cost will be more than covered by those projected savings.

Points are awarded based on participation — not on outcomes or individual health status — and each activity is assigned a certain number of points. To reach the full 125 points, however, employees must take an annual Personal Health Assessment, an online wellness and lifestyle questionnaire that asks for an individual’s current health data, including height, weight, blood pressure, cholesterol and glucose measurements.

Activities must be completed within a specific period and reported before the program closes on Sept. 30 to be eligible for the incentive.

Fred Sanfilippo, CEO of the Medical Center, said the goal is to make employees active participants in their health care decisions.

“We often all need a little encouragement to do things we have thought about doing but maybe have put off,” he said. “It’s been proven that people are more likely to engage in healthy behaviors and better manage their chronic conditions if there is an incentive involved. We hope faculty and staff take advantage of all the opportunities offered by Your Plan for Health — including the incentive program — because they want to feel good and lead a healthy life.”

The university anticipates 50 to 75 percent of eligible faculty and staff — those with regular appointments and auxiliary faculty with a full-time equivalency of 50 percent or greater — will participate. Only Affiliated Group members, such as those in the Alumni Association, must be enrolled in the Ohio State medical plans to participate. And anyone not employed by OSU at the time of the payout is ineligible to receive incentive money.

Lewellen, one of the architects behind the program, said he will participate.

“As a healthy individual who wants to stay that way, engaging in health-related activities makes sense, because healthy living really does pay off,” Lewellen said.

The University of Michigan has built a quality incentive program that continues to grow, as have companies like IBM, Steelcase and Quaker Oats. Ohio State hopes to add to that track record.

“A healthier university community will translate into improved quality of life, increased productivity, an enhanced university reputation and health care savings for both employees and the university,” Lewellen said. “I believe there is a great degree of individual interest in health and health improvement in our society today.”

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