Employee Health Programs / Health Care Spending Facts

Health Care Spending Facts

In 2004, national health care expenditures totaled $1.9 trillion, an average of $6,280 per person, which means the US spent 16% of its GDP on health. Today, one out of every six dollars spent in the United States is spent on health care, and that number is expected to rise to one in five dollars by the year 2016. If nothing changes, the spending on health care will then be close to 20% of GDP, nearly $4 trillion. Employees are paying a greater share of these costs every year with co-payments rising rapidly. The costs to corporations, i.e. the rising expenses as a result of employees not being in good health, are taking a big chunk out of the companies’ profits. By giving employees an HPA Health Profile Assessment, employers can find out what their employees need in terms of weight loss, smoking cessation and so forth. Some companies change the food they offer in the cafeteria, others decide to offer healthier snacks in the vending machines, and many companies pay for employees’ gym memberships. Once an HPA Health Profile Assessment is done, the group evaluation will give the company a very important overview of how the employees of the company are doing, viewed as a group. A company cannot force their employees to get healthier, but they can offer opportunities and information that will assist the employee in making positive changes.

The dilemma for companies is that resources are spent when an employee is already sick or injured, making the cost to cure him very high. Spending a small amount on preventative care will save money in the long run. It has been the consensus that companies feel that the health and wellness of their employees are personal matters. With rapidly increasing health care costs to companies, it is now understood that the health and habits of the employees are important information for the company. The more time and effort a company invests in information and promotion for a healthy lifestyle, the greater the chance their employees will stay healthy and make the right choices when it comes to exercise and eating habits. Preventing illness can be as easy as paying for immunization programs. Overall health and safety also includes information on seatbelt use, as well as drinking and driving.

The general rule at companies is that 20% of employees generate 80% of the health care costs. An Employee Health Program’s most important goal should be to keep healthy employees healthy. By monitoring employees and giving them a health screening each year, the company will be able to help people that are on the wrong track. It is important to intervene before things get out of hand. Getting rid of 20 pounds of overweight is easier than loosing 65 pounds. For companies, the goal is to make sure that future expenses do not occur. It is all about prevention. Nowadays, it is legal for companies to deny smokers a place to smoke in the work place. Sadly, smoking continues to be the number one preventable death in our country. Hundreds of thousands of people die each year in tobacco related deaths. It is beneficial to a company to spend money on smoking cessation classes for tobacco-addicted employees. Once an individual stops smoking, the body will start to heal itself within hours. True, some of the damage cannot be undone, but for every year a former smoker is smoke-free, his risk of dying of a tobacco-related illness is decreasing. Once an individual quits smoking, it is more likely he will exercise, (since breathing gets easier and easier after you quit), and he might eat healthier as well (taste and smell will be enhanced after you give up smoking).

Paying for yearly health screenings is a very effective way for companies to save money on future health costs. Many individuals do not know that they are in the risk zone for diabetes, or other chronic diseases. By finding out before they are diagnosed with the disease, there is a great chance they can avoid it by changing their lifestyle habits.