Wellness

Already topping $20 billion a year, UnitedHealthcare predicts its contract reimbursements to hospitals, physicians and ancillary care providers linked to accountable care will hit $50 billion by 2017.

Guest blogger Linda K. Riddell reviews Cracking Health Costs by Tom Emerick and Al Lewis.

The U.S. government is set to decide this month whether federal health insurance should cover the cost of a $3,000 test that for the first time accurately identifies the signature brain plaques of Alzheimer’s disease.

Wellness study shows little progress, but HHS endorses wellness plans with final ACA rules.

“Our results support the ancient proverb: ‘Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince and dinner like a pauper,”’ says Hana Kahleova, a researcher at the Institute for Clinical and Experimental Medicine in Prague, Czech Republic.

Consuming an additional half-serving a day of red meat during a four-year period increased a person’s chance of developing diabetes by 48% in the subsequent four years, according to a study this month in JAMA Internal Medicine.

Health and wellness company receives $8 million from venture capital firms and announces new clients, partnerships and additions to its leadership team.

Less than five months before the Affordable Care Act fully kicks in, hospitals are improving care and saving millions of dollars with one of the least touted but potentially most effective provisions of the law.

Survivors of childhood cancers are likely to have chronic ailments such as lower lung function and heart conditions that require medical attention as they become adults, researchers say.

Historically, voluntary benefits have been dismissed by busy agents as more trouble than they are worth, but with the Affordable Care Act moving closer to full implementation, agents looking to keep existing clients and gain new business should give them a closer look. Still not convinced? Following are five reasons for incorporating voluntary benefits into client proposals: …

Since its passage in 2008, the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act has largely just affected HIPAA notice requirements and wellness plans. But this month the EEOC settled its first case under the law and should serve as a reminder to employers about what it really means.

Nathan Schwegman was just 25 when his doctor told him he had a 3% chance of surviving the melanoma that had spread into his lungs and spine, soon leaving him in so much pain he could hardly move.

When choosing an employer, about 87% of prospective employees favor a company that has a wellness program in place, finds Virgin HealthMiles. But with the return on investment of such programs in question, will they continue to gain favor with employers as well?

Tech company Brocade uses its new campus to kick-start its wellness program and uses gamification to engage employees.

The Departments of Labor, Treasury and Health and Human Services issued what are being called final rules on employment-based wellness programs, and advocacy groups immediately weighed in on the changes, which were required under the Affordable Care Act.

Businesses in the U.S. won more freedom to charge higher insurance premiums to workers who don’t meet health goals, or reward those who shape up, under rules released by the Obama administration.

Companies such as Domino’s Pizza are introducing a new weight loss challenge program that doesn’t cost them anything and makes employees put some skin in the game.

By setting wellness exceptions, health care experts and insurance brokers find success with an integrated solution that goes beyond vendor selection

Unions and management at Seattle’s Swedish Medical Center collaborate to bring wellness programs to employees, with both vowing to take care of workers in the same way they take care of patients.

As more companies embrace consumer-driven health care models and prepare for the full implementation of health care reform, employees need voluntary benefits more than ever. This chart pack includes the latest data on voluntary benefits from the Aflac WorkForces Report and UBA’s Ancillary Products Survey.