While there is still much discussion about whether and how incentives really work for engaging employees in wellness programs, most companies still plan on increasing the dollar value of the incentives they offer. That’s according to a survey of 139 employers from Fidelity and the National Business Group on Health released last week to analyze the growth of health-improvement programs in the workplace, which usually entail condition-management services (e.g., managing insulin treatments), lifestyle-management services (e.g., weight-loss advice) and health-risk management services (e.g., onsite flu shots).
The survey finds that almost three out of four (73%) companies used incentives in 2011 to engage employees in health-improvement programs and the average incentive value was $460. That figure has steadily increased from an average of $430 in 2010 and $260 in 2009. According to the study, employers used different types of incentives including cash, gift cards and contributions to health savings accounts. The majority (57%) agreed that incentive-based programs had a better than expected success rate at increasing employee participation.
