Healthy Workforce Act to Support Corporate Wellness Programs

The Healthy Workforce Act was introduced to Congress on April 2, 2009. Presented by US Senators Tom Harkin, a Democrat from Iowa, and John Cornyn, a Republican from Texas, this bill seeks to provide funding in the form of a tax credit to businesses that introduce a Worksite Wellness Program. The Healthy Workforce Act is part of the Obama administration’s stimulus package, and will create approximately 40,000 new jobs. Healthcare has become a major focus of the Obama administration, and this bill would allow employers to offer the tools and materials to educate their employees on health and wellness, through effective, knowledge based onsite programs. The end-goal of this bill surely is to decrease medical costs to employers nationwide by relying on Worksite Wellness Programs to empower employees to educate themselves about their own health.
If passed in its current form, the bill would offer employers a tax credit that would cover 50% of the costs of a worksite wellness program, up to $200 per employee for the first 200 employees. For every employee beyond 200, the bill would offer a tax credit that would cover up to $100 towards the cost of the wellness program. This tax credit will allow businesses that may not have the funding for a wellness program in the current economic climate the necessary means to put such a program in place. Small and midsized businesses will benefit the most from this bill, as these types of businesses may not have had the budgetary resources to devote towards a wellness program.
This legislation also discusses components that an effective wellness program should have, such as a health risk assessment, an onsite wellness committee to keep the employees population active and engaged in the program, incentives to reward participation, and educational materials based on best practices. These tools will encourage employees to understand their health, their risks, and how those risks can be modified with diet, exercise, and proper medical care.
Lower medical costs are not the only benefit that employers will see when implementing a workplace wellness program. Encouraging employees to take a proactive approach to their health also leads to a decrease in sick time, fewer cases of disability, increased productivity in the workplace, and increased employee morale. Industry research has shown that employers can expect to see a $1:$3 Return on Investment from a workplace wellness program- for every dollar that is invested, employers will see $3 in return.
The Healthy Workforce Act has been endorsed by such businesses as the American Heart Association, Aetna, Blue Cross and Blue Shield, GlaxoSmithKline, Pfizer Inc, and the US Chamber of Commerce.

eni strongly supports the Healthy Workforce Act and has become an official endorser of this legislation, and encourage your organization to do the same by clicking here.