Fixing Healthcare Costs (And Turnover And Productivity Issues) Starts In The Workplace

By Jeffrey Pfeffer

In the U.S., large — meaning invariably self-insured — companies are obsessed with reducing their healthcare costs, and for good reason. At one time, General Motors paid more for healthcare than it did for steel.

The emphasis on cost containment has spawned a multibillion dollar “wellness” industry and health and wellness initiatives in well over 70 percent of U.S. employers. But the evidence for the effectiveness of employer- sponsored health improvement programs is at best mixed. Here’s what employers concerned about healthcare, and, for that matter, productivity and employee retention, need to do.