Workplace Wellness & the Affordable Care Act

In recent years rising health care costs, health insurance premium inflation, productivity losses, and the proliferation of obesity-related health maladies have prompted employers to invest in implementing cost-effective, sustainable worksite wellness programs. Programs designed to encourage the use of preventive health services, improve healthy eating behaviors and promote physical activity among the workforce have gained considerable traction. New provisions under The Affordable Care Act (ACA) have presented viable opportunities and salient incentives for organizations to invest in cultural norm changes to reintegrate healthy eating and physical activity into the workplace. However, the uptake of evidence-based, rigorously evaluated worksite wellness programming has lagged. Further, there is concern over the effectiveness of prevalent worksite wellness models in eliciting measurable, sustainable impacts on individual health behaviors and health outcomes.

 

The purpose of this session is to elucidate and contextualize the most salient worksite wellness-related provisions in the Affordable Care Act. Results from a brief systematic literature review and policy scan will be presented to assist participants in leveraging the most relevant opportunities to promote worksite wellness under the ACA.