Public Employers Step up Wellness Efforts

Trends in Public Employee Plans, released by the International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans and co-sponsored by the State and Local Government Benefits Association (SALGBA), says of the public employers surveyed, 72% offer wellness initiatives, 65% offer a disease-management program (a coordinated approach focusing on reducing costs and improving the quality of life for plan participants with a chronic condition), and 31% offer value-based care initiatives (a consumer-centered approach that uses education, preventive care and financial incentives to improve health while reducing costs).

Most public employers surveyed, 80%, expect to increase their emphasis on wellness initiatives in the next two years, according to a press release. In addition, 72% report they are likely to increase their emphasis on disease management, and 57% cite they are likely to increase their emphasis on value-based health care initiatives.

To help control their portion of health care costs, 57% of public employers report they have increased employee contributions to health plan premiums for 2010.

The majority (86%) of the public employers surveyed currently offer or are planning to offer voluntary benefits. Public employers report using voluntary (employee-paid) benefit plans in order to expand the breadth and depth of employee choice (73%); increase employee morale, loyalty, and productivity (61%); and fill gaps in employer-sponsored benefits (55%).

The most common voluntary benefits offered are term life insurance (64%), life insurance coverage for dependents (57%), dental insurance (55%), long-term disability (52%), vision insurance (52%), and long-term care insurance (49%). Seventeen percent of the public employers surveyed plan to increase their voluntary benefit offerings within the next two years.

Over half of employers (55%) believe that voluntary benefits are a win-win supplement to an organization’s benefit package, and 52% think voluntary benefits are a good way to promote individual responsibility and accountability. Fifty-eight percent predict that voluntary benefit products will grow in popularity if more employers reduce employer-sponsored coverage.

The survey results include responses from 569 individuals in the United States representing municipalities, counties/districts, states, educational institutions/education-related organizations and other public entities.