Wellness programs are on the rise in workplaces across the country, but with their growing popularity has come increased scrutiny of their effectiveness. Some experts claim that seemingly intuitive policies aimed at rewarding health lifestyles could produce the opposite effect.
In particular, some say that financial penalties for certain behaviors could deter people from engaging in the wellness program or interacting with health care professionals.
"Some say [penalties] are good because it forces people to be healthy. But that's not what the evidence says. These programs can prevent people from accessing the services they need, and that can have a detrimental effect on their health," Claire McAndrew, private insurance program director at Families USA, a consumer advocacy organization, told U.S. News and World Report.
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JoAnn Volk, a senior research fellow at Georgetown University's Center on Health Insurance Reforms, delivered a similarly pessimistic view to U.S. News: "There continues to be no evidence that putting money on the line makes it more likely that people are going to have long-term changes in their health behaviors and improve health outcomes," she said.
The key is to focus less on punishment for bad practices and instead offer employees ways to better their health. Simply charging smokers more for their health insurance is less effective than making evidence-based smoking cessation programs available to workers. In addition, for employees to be truly forthcoming during health assessments, they need assurances that information they provide about their lifestyle will remain confidential.
And of course, it's not only employees who should have to improve their practices to achieve wellness. Comprehensive wellness programs demand that employers take steps to promote health in the workplace. According to U.S. News & World Report, that includes computers that remind workers to take a screen break, healthier meal offerings in cafeterias and unlocking stairwell doors so that workers aren't forced to take elevators.
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