Making COBRA available for domestic partners, too

Losing a job is difficult enough. But even more disruptive is losing your health coverage. That’s why many people opt for COBRA to maintain their coverage after termination – protection and peace of mind for you, your spouse and your dependent children.

But what if you’re in a gay relationship? Under current COBRA law, continuation coverage would not apply to your same-sex spouse or partner, even if you worked for a company that offered this level of health coverage.

Senator Barbara Boxer of California wants to do something about that. She recently introduced legislation – the Equal Access to COBRA Act of 2010 - that would allow many domestic partners the same access to COBRA health coverage that married couples currently have.

COBRA coverage would apply to those companies that already offer health benefits to domestic partners and their children. (Currently, that amounts to more than half of Fortune 500 companies.) Domestic partners could also tap into the 65% COBRA premium subsidy that has been extended a couple of times under the Obama administration.

On her website, Barbara Boxer states:

“This is a question of fairness: Every family deserves access to health insurance, especially in this tough economy. This bill ensures that domestic partners and their families will have equal access to health coverage after a job loss.”

Boxer’s proposed bill is now with the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor and Pensions.

Making COBRA available for domestic partners, too

Wellness investment yields better than 1:1 return

For companies to commit financially to anything these days, executives first need to know that the return on investment (ROI) is worth getting involved. Even internal investments such as employee wellness programs, which have lacked hard ROI data in the past, must prove that they’re a sound investment.

If you’re one of those searching for wellness program ROI data, you’ll be happy to hear that recent research suggests companies that invest in employee wellness get their investment back, and then some.

A survey of 225 employers by Health2 Resources revealed that 73% of companies successfully measured the ROI of wellness programs. Of those that measured ROI, 83% said their programs had a return of better than 1:1 on their investment.

"Employers are becoming more sophisticated about measuring the return on investment from wellness and disease management programs, and today's economic outlook dictates that these programs bring a positive ROI," said Sean Sullivan, president and CEO of the Institute for Health and Productivity Management.

"No other kind of health management program has been given the same scrutiny as health and productivity management in measuring its effectiveness in reducing total health-related costs, including sick days, disability claims and impaired performance at work. Employees are too valuable a human capital investment for companies to take their health and productivity for granted."

The survey also found that most employers with and without wellness programs in place believe that paying employees to participate boosts program success and return value. An estimated two out of three U.S. companies offer programs dedicated to employee health, and 66% of those with programs also use incentives.

Other key findings:

• The most commonly used incentives are premium reductions followed by merchandise/tokens and gift cards.
• Smoking cessation programs are the most popular health and wellness program to offer, with weight management and physical activity programs a close second.
• Some organizations with as few as 210 employees are offering incentives valued at $1,450 per year to keep employees healthy.
• Diabetes programs are the most popular disease management program offered in 2009.

Does your company offer any health and wellness programs for employees? What kind of incentives, if any, are promoted to get employees involved? Have they seen a positive ROI?

Please leave a comment and let us know about your company’s experience with wellness programs.

Wellness investment yields better than 1:1 return

Employers brace for 2010 healthcare cost hike

It’s estimated that U.S. employers will see a 9 percent jump in healthcare costs in 2010 and workers will be footing more of the bill, according to an annual trend report by PricewaterhouseCoopers (PwC).

The annual medical costs trends report also revealed that workers are more likely to utilize their health insurance coverage out of fear that they will loose their jobs. More uninsured and underinsured people are expected to turn to Medicaid for health coverage.

The rise in healthcare costs may be offset partially by cost declines associated with U.S. health care reforms and the potential for high deductible health plans and wellness programs, according to PwC.

Of the 500 employers surveyed by PwC: 



• 42% plan to increase their workers’ share of healthcare costs in 2010, and
• 41% said they would change the design of health care plans to increase medical cost sharing.

The study comes at a time when new health-reform legislation is heating up congressional hearings. President Obama has pledged to push his plans to revamp health-care regulation through Congress and Senate hearings this summer. Before anything is approved, it will be up to employers to manage rising costs.

"Employers are squeezing dollars out of their programs to save money," Mike Thompson, principal at PricewaterhouseCoopers global human resource solutions group, said in a statement.

"As the economy recovers, employers will refocus on more sustainable longer term approaches to medical cost containment based on an increasingly shared interest between employers and their workers." (Reuters)

What is your company doing to offset the rise in healthcare costs? Please leave a comment and let us know.

Employers brace for 2010 healthcare cost hike