Healthcare coverage is the largest employee-related expense for U.S. employers, and those costs are rising. Partnerships between health systems and employers can reduce employee health costs and increase productivity, among other benefits.
Employer-sponsored plans are, on average, more expensive than individual health plans or anything you might find on the Health Insurance Marketplace created by the Affordable Care Act. According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, nearly 50% of people get their healthcare benefits through their employer – making it the most popular health insurance option.
As a result, employers are searching for solutions to improve employee health and wellbeing while bending their cost curve. Partnering with a local health system to build a tailored value-based wellbeing program can help them achieve this.
Workplace health programs can impact healthcare costs
Our behaviors account for fifty percent of what makes us healthy. By promoting healthy habits, wellness programs coordinated through healthcare system-employer partnerships can help reduce the need for medical care and lower overall healthcare costs for both the employer and employees. As an added benefit, employees are more likely to be productive, focused, and engaged in their work when they are healthy and well.
In fact, the CDC says investment in employee health may lower healthcare costs and insurance claims, citing a systematic review of 56 published studies of worksite health programs that showed well-implemented workplace health programs can lead to 25% savings each on absenteeism, healthcare costs, and workers’ compensation and disability management claims costs.
A value-based wellbeing program encourages a healthy lifestyle for employees with financial incentives, education, evidence-based interventions, and – most importantly – a relationship with a primary care provider. An employer-health system partnership can provide the clinical resources needed to ensure the whole-person care your employees need – leading to healthier employees and a healthier bottom line.
That’s why more healthcare organizations are using value-based care through population health to improve care and lower costs.
- The 2022 Employer Health Benefits Survey reported that 54% of small employers (3-200) and 85% of large employers (200+) have worksite wellness programs.
- According to the CDC, 76% of large worksites (roughly 700+ employees) use local health systems and other healthcare professionals for their wellness programs.
- While mileage may vary depending on company size and industry type, Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy estimates that the median potential profit gain from lowering ESI spending by $1,373 per employee per year is 3.54% for Fortune 500 companies.
Value-based care requires integration among stakeholders, working towards common goals: improving the population’s health, quality of care, and health outcomes – all while reducing costs. Starting with the hospital employee population, healthcare employers can build an integrated ecosystem of employee wellbeing solutions, utilizing their care continuum – and then expanding the program to work directly with local employers to improve population health efforts in the community.
Partnerships between health systems, hospitals, and employers in the community provide a unique opportunity for comprehensive wellbeing solutions that work toward value-based wellbeing.
How can inHealth help reduce employer-sponsored insurance costs?
inHealth Strategies provides the expertise and resources to create seamless partnerships between healthcare systems and employers, providing value-based, employee wellbeing solutions designed to improve population health and reduce costs.
We work with healthcare employers to optimize existing healthcare resources, integrating them with our innovative engagement, incentive, and analytics capabilities – while also incorporating the personal touch needed for an impactful program. We then work with our clients to provide clinical and outcome-driven wellness services to their community employers as a revenue generator and as a marketing/branding strategy.
To learn more about how inHealth supports these partnerships, visit our website at www.inhealth4change.com or email us at info@inhealth4change.com.
