Employee Weight Loss Can Shed Dollars from Your Health Plan Spending
Originally Published in RMP Advisor, December 2009Over the past few decades the number of Americans who are obese or overweight has skyrocketed. According to data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, almost two-thirds of U.S. adults are overweight or obese, and close to one-third are obese. Individuals carrying extra weight increase their risk for a number of health conditions and diseases, including high blood pressure, high cholesterol and triglycerides, osteoarthritis, type 2 diabetes, coronary heart disease, stroke, sleep apnea, respiratory problems, and some types of cancers.
It doesn’t take a great leap of logic to see that because obesity can lead to many serious health conditions, it also leads to higher healthcare costs. An article in Health Affairs, “The Impact of Obesity on Rising Medical Spending,” concluded that both escalating obesity rates and the higher medical costs incurred by obese individuals accounted for 27% of the growth in per capita healthcare spending in the United States between 1987 and 2001. Healthcare spending ran approximately 36% higher among obese adults under the age of 65 than it did for adults of normal weight. Among individuals ages 50 to 69, healthcare spending by the severely obese (body mass index [BMI] of 35 and above) averaged 60% more than for those of normal weight.
This study also found that growth in obesity rates accounted for more than 41% of heart disease spending growth and 38% of diabetes spending growth.
A later study by the same lead author examined differences in health-care spending between Americans and Europeans. Per person U.S. healthcare spending in 2004 averaged $6,037; spending in 10 European countries ranged from 35% to 67% of this amount, with the highest per person healthcare spending, $4,045, taking place in Switzerland. According to this study, neither the capacity of a country’s health-care system, nor access to technology, explains this gap. Rather, for many of the most costly chronic medical conditions, such as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes, both diagnosed prevalence and treatment rates were higher in the Unites States. Heart disease and diabetes are strongly linked to obesity, and obesity prevalence in Europe is far below what it is in the Unites States—17%, compared with almost 33%.
With the link between obesity and increased health-care spending so clear, employers have ample reasons to take steps to help employees attain a healthy weight, and then maintain it. Such measures can help to control and even lower health-care spending, sometimes without cutting back on benefits or shifting costs to employees. And these measures don’t have to cost a lot. Consider these ideas:
- Offer employees access to health risk assessments (HRAs). Many health plan vendors offer these as a confidential way for employees to get an honest, objective appraisal of their risks for certain conditions without having to make an appointment to see a doctor.
- Make it easy for employees to get screenings for blood pressure, cholesterol/triglyceride, and blood sugar levels. Make sure your health plan offers generous coverage for these tests. Also, occasionally provide free onsite screenings, which, like the HRA, provide employees the chance to monitor their readings without having to see a doctor.
- Run articles in the company newsletter on topics related to the health risks associated with being overweight, tips on trimming the fat, ideas for fun and convenient ways to get exercise, etc.
- Host a healthy snack day in the workplace with company-provided fruit, veggies, and healthy dips.
- Sponsor Weight Watchers at Work.
- Form a company walking club or athletic team. Participate as a company in a charity walk or run in your town.
- Arrange for luncheon speakers on topics related to weight loss and management, exercise, fitness, etc.
- If you have an onsite cafeteria, focus the menu on fresh, low-fat choices. Stock vending machines with granola bars, nuts, and flavored waters.
The possibilities are endless. Your health plan provider and employee assistance program provider can be good resources for ideas and contacts for programs on weight loss, disease prevention, and overall fitness.