A Guide To Fitness Culture Development

OK, where’s that easy plan for Fitness Culture development? It’s coming up, but first, let’s talk about what has worked. What has been effective.

Consumer Directed Insurance Plans That Work:

In November, 2006, AON Corporation, a Chicago-based human resources and insurance firm, released a research report that covered the long-term impact of consumer-directed healthcare. The data was provided by Discovery Insurance and by Destiny Insurance, which cover more than two million lives. (We have no affiliation with AON, Discovery or Destiny.)

The conclusions of the AON report were that consumer-directed health plans provide sufficient motivation for consumers to not only become value healthcare shoppers, but also to embrace wellness programs, to improve personal health status and to reduce medical claims and costs.

Although the fitness culture was not the focus of the AON report, the report absolutely confirmed the validity and effectiveness of the principles of a health mindset when they are followed. Report findings were:

1. Improved Health Lifestyle: Wellness programs in conjunction with health insurance were successful in getting consumers to modify their personal health habits;

2. Effective Value Shoppers: Consumers became value healthcare shoppers over time, using less medical service and shopping for lower costs. Chronic care expenses were reduced by two-thirds. Emergencies were reduced by fifteen percent;

3. No Avoidance of Care: Short-term cost savings did not result in long-term ill effects. Consumers did not avoid care to save money;

4. Improved Long-Term Health: Consumers who were in the program the longest continued to have lower claims and fewer hospital admissions, indicating better long-term health;

5. Chronic Health Problems: Reward-based wellness programs improved chronic health conditions as personal habits – overweight, smoking, exercise – improved.

The AON study showed that consumers can and will eventually become good value healthcare shoppers and effective managers of their healthcare affairs. The learning curve for those in the AON study was long because they had little or no help in dealing with the healthcare system and marketplace.

That is the reason the Medical Self Care Prevention and Affairs Management services are so important to developing a healthy mindset for your fitness lifestyle. Those information, advisory and advocacy services are key to the success of you, your family members and your employees in better managing their healthcare affairs in less time and at lower cost.

Back To The Plan:

The following guidelines are directed at the workplace, but they are valid as personal and family suggestions.

What exact steps can an employer take to establish and promote workplace fitness conduct? You can:

• require testing for illegal drugs as a requirement for employment;

• establish and maintain the workplace as a drug-free and a smoke-free environment;

• establish the use of High Deductible Health Plans, see High Deductible Health Plans, for all employees of the same class (for example all employees or all new hires). Use traditional health plans, see traditional health plans if you feel compelled to do that. But, as much as possible, seek to give employees maximum responsibility for their healthcare;

• if it is absolutely necessary for financial survival of the business, discontinue employer paid insurance in favor of personal insurance paid by employees, see pseudo group health plans, but offered in conjunction with other employer fitness assistance services and in conjunction with offering employees some portion of savings from insurance premiums not paid;

• establish a “results based” employee fitness program to help employees improve and manage their fitness in accordance with HIPAA rules. See Personal Fitness Plan.

• establish a Medical Self Care Service Plan to help employees to understand their medical care options and to minimize costs. For information on Medical Self Care Services, go to Medical Self Care Prevention and to Affairs Management.

• offer children’s insurance assistance guidance for qualified employees. For information on children’s care, go to Children's Health Insurance.

• offer information and guidelines on prevention, nutrition and longevity. For more information, go to Preventive Health and Fitness; and,

• offer a Patient Care Plan that provides information, advice, assistance and advocacy services to help employees manage their family healthcare system issues. For more information, go to Patient Care Plan.

These are the main components we use to develop the health and wellness mindset. These programs will promote a workplace healthy environment that guides and assists you and your employees to be successful in conducting family healthcare affairs. Employees will be better able to manage their care and to control costs. As employer, you will be able to reduce your costs, limit future cost increases, and minimize your employee healthcare responsibilities.

Upon establishing and developing your workplace healthy environment, as an employer, you will reduce your costs for employee benefits and your involvement in employee healthcare affairs. As bonus benefits, it can lower employee absenteeism and enhance productivity. You’ll be able to focus on your real business and the reason you got into your business.

For an individual or for an employee and your family members, our health mindset services offer access to information, advice, assistance and advocacy. It will help you simplify your options so that you can better manage your healthcare affairs at reduced cost and in less time.

If you have questions or need additional information, go to our Contact Us Form.

WARNING: NEVER CANCEL YOUR CURRENT INSURANCE UNTIL REPLACEMENT COVERAGE IS APPROVED AND IN PLACE.

If you are ready to get a proposal and health plan quote, go to the appropriate Health Plan Quote Guide for individuals, or for families, or for groups.