Edington will address the economic benefits of work-place wellness programs on March 21 during the research center's 20th annual Wellness in the Workplace Conference in Ann Arbor. Corporations now see health management programs as the only long-term alternative to the continuing escalation of medical care costs. Nearly 60 percent of all companies and 95 percent of large companies have programs designed to encourage individuals to take some responsibility for their own health. There is greater return from investment in preventing healthy people from slipping into poor health behaviors than by trying to make chronically sick people well.
Individuals benefit in terms of less pain and suffering and a higher quality of life.
Employers were first introduced to the concept of investing in health promotion programs in the 1970s. Work-place wellness programs have caught on. They are more than a trend, more than an experimental program of employers who know they can trim health care costs and improve productivity by providing an environment where employees remain healthy. Employees like them because exercising, eating right and chilling out makes them feel better. Employers like them because happier, healthier employees are more productive and cost less.