GiftCard Partners Blog

Wearable technology is gaining popularity in the consumer market and has the potential to transform the way employers structure their employee health and wellness initiatives. The transformation will have an effect on the price tag of these initiatives, but the direct effect of incorporating wearable technology will ease the time it takes for employers to track employee wellness activity. 

Corporate wellness programs are a hot topic amongst corporate HR departments, especially given the incentives available through the newly minted
Affordable Care Act rules that can provide discounts to employers and employees for healthy behavior. If you don't have a corporate wellness plan, it's time to put one in place. Healthier employees are more productive, and represent less financial risk to your organization. Here are a few tips to help you get going.

Workplace wellness trends have been a hot topic over the last few months.  Recently, the 
International Foundation of Employee Benefit Plans, released
Workplace Wellness Trends: 2015, an in depth survey conducted last October which uncovered the most prevalent types of initiatives, wellness offerings and trends, wellness outcomes and ROI, as well as incentives and strategies.  78% of the survey findings were from US organizations while 22% were from Canadian organizations.  The glaring difference between the US and Canada was the focus on the healthcare system.  The Affordable Care Act's influence has most US organizations focusing more on controlling health-related costs while Canadian organizations were more likely to focus on investing in employee health and engagement. Here are some other notable survey findings:

Love is in the air, or it will be tomorrow. As we prepare for a holiday full of chocolates and roses,
CVS/pharmacy has both classic and non-traditional gift options available. With everything from perfumes, photo cards, razors and male grooming equipment on sale, to bonuses for ExtraCare rewards members on certain purchases and purchasing thresholds, it's easier than ever to make your special one feel special this Valentine's Day. While some may view the holiday as hokey and only meant for the love birds, Valentine's Day can be used as a unique opportunity to show gratitude and appreciation for the employees in your office. Your support staff, your junior level employees, the people in the mail room (heck, even the person who delivers the mail!) are great people to thank on Valentine's Day. Simple "Thank You's," especially during these dark, cold winter months, can be a great morale boost. Thank you gifts don't need to be big either. A
$10 gift card to retailers like CVS/pharmacy can be a great way to say thanks without breaking the bank, especially with the variety of merchandise on sale. For healthier options that can support new year's resolutions and employee's healthy lifestyle the
CVS Select® Gift Card can help with the temptation by limiting the merchandise the card can be redeemed for (so skip the chocolate when using this gift card!). So who do you want or need to thank this Valentines Day? Think beyond the cupid interpretation and show "love" as gratitude to the people who make your business great!

New research from
Mercer LLC shows a 3% increase in use of carrot style rewards in the context of health and wellness programs. These health and wellness rewards are largely tied to employees' achieving a certain change or reaching a certain biometric range for preventable conditions like obesity, high cholesterol, high blood pressure, etc. According to the research, 23% of large employers are using positive reinforcements as health and wellness rewards.
A Towers Watson study from September also indicates an increase in outcome-based health and wellness rewards, with 18% using them currently and 10% planning to add programs in 2015. While some health and wellness industry professionals believe the days of spot rewards are over, in favor of an organizational shift towards discounting insurance costs, this shift is only being observed by larger firms. While smaller businesses cannot absorb the financial impact of larger policy discounts, spot rewards offer an alternative with the potential to scale up or add larger rewards at a later date. The increased use of health and wellness rewards at a variety of levels, from small spot rewards like
gift cards to large discounts on health insurance, signals a larger trend. Health and wellness programs and health and wellness rewards are becoming a mainstream, integral part of the way benefits and healthcare are delivered from employers to employees. Health and wellness rewards has become a mechanism for employers to make healthcare more affordable for employees, while also ensuring their workforce is healthy and productive, and healthcare is also affordable at the organizational level.
For more information on health and wellness rewards and how they are being used, head over to BusinessInsurance.com.