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Health Care Survey Finds Spending on Corporate

Wellness Incentives to Increase 15 Percent in 2014
02/20/14

Fidelity and National Business Group on Health Find Average Wellness Incentives to
Increase to Almost $600 per Employee, More than Double the Average Incentive in 2009
BOSTON Corporate employers plan to spend an average of $594 per employee on wellness-based
incentives within their health care programs this year, according to a new employer survey1 conducted
by Fidelity Investments and the National Business Group on Health (NBGH). This marks an increase
of 15 percent from the average of $521 reported for 2013, and is more than double the average of $260
reported five years ago. The largest increase was among companies with fewer than 5,000 employees,
where the per employee average climbed to $595, one-third higher than the average of $444 per
employee in 2013.
The survey is the latest in a series Fidelity and the NBGH have conducted since 2009 to analyze the
growth of corporate health improvement programs, which are designed to help employers manage their
corporate health care costs by creating a healthier workforce. The most popular wellness programs
continue to be focused on lifestyle management, such as physical activity programs, weight
management programs and stress management. Other popular health improvement options include
disease/care management programs (e.g., managing chronic health conditions, like diabetes), lifestylemanagement services (e.g., weight loss advice, gym membership discounts), health-risk management
services (e.g., on-site flu shots) and environmental enhancements (e.g., bike racks, walking paths).
In addition to increasing the average amount spent per employee, the survey found that most
companies view wellness programs as an essential part of their benefits program. The survey found
that 95 percent of companies plan to offer some kind of health improvement program for their
employees, and the percentage of companies offering incentives to participate in these initiatives has
increased from 57 percent in 2009 to 74 percent in 2014.
When asked about ongoing funding for wellness-based incentive programs, 93 percent of companies
indicated they plan to expand or maintain funding for their program over the next three to five years.
And 44 percent of companies said they plan to maintain or increase their investment in wellness
programs, even if their company were to move away from direct involvement in employer-sponsored
health coverage, such as a move to a private exchange model to provide health benefits for their
employees.
Companies expand incentives to include spouses, provide incentives through HSAs
As the design of wellness programs continues to evolve, an increasing number of companies are
expanding wellness-based incentives to include spouses and domestic partners. Nearly four out of ten
(37 percent) of companies surveyed indicated their program will include spouses and domestic partners
in 2014, and the average spouse/domestic partner incentive is expected to reach $530 in 2014, more
than $100 higher than the average of $420 in 2010. When analyzing the data by company size, the
results showed that employers with more than 20,000 employees expect to spend an average of $611
on spouses/domestic partners in 2014.
While many employers offer incentives through cash or a gift card, an increasing number of employers
offer incentives through an employer-sponsored health savings account (HSA), flexible spending
account (FSA) or similar care-based savings vehicle. More than a third (34 percent) of employers plan
to contribute to an HSA or FSA for engaging in a disease or care management program, while 33
percent plan to offer a similar incentive for participation in a stress management program. Three out of
ten employers (30 percent) plan to offer incentives through contributions to an HSA/FSA for enrollment
in a weight management program.
While the use and measurement of corporate wellness programs continue to evolve, it has become
clear that many employers understand the value of and are committed to wellness-based incentives
in their company health plan, said Robert Kennedy, Health & Welfare Practice Leader with Fidelitys
Benefits Consulting business. Companies are constantly looking for new and creative ways to expand
their programs and motivate their workforce, such as extending wellness incentives to spouses and
offering incentives through a contribution to a health savings account. Increasingly, employers are
viewing health improvement even more broadly through the lens of well-being and productivity.
This is our fifth annual wellness survey with Fidelity, and its encouraging to see how the use of
wellness programs has evolved since 2009 and how employers continue to look for new ways to
improve their plans and encourage employee engagement, said Helen Darling, president and chief
executive officer of NBGH. Based on the feedback from this years survey respondents, its obvious
that wellness programs not only play a key role in many corporate health care plans today, but theyll
continue to be an integral part of corporate benefit programs in the future.
About the National Business Group on Health
The National Business Group on Health is the nation's only non-profit organization devoted exclusively
to representing large employers' perspective on national health policy issues and providing practical
solutions to its members' most important health care problems. NBGH helps drive today's health
agenda while promoting ideas for controlling health care costs, improving patient safety and quality of

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care, and sharing best practices in health benefits management with senior benefits, HR professionals,
and medical directors from leading corporations. For more information, visit
www.businessgrouphealth.org.
About Fidelitys Benefits Consulting
Fidelitys Benefits Consulting business helps mid- to large-size employers nationwide assess the
effectiveness of their benefits programs. The business provides a comprehensive approach to benefits
design, strategy, funding, communications and delivery by looking at clients health care and retirement
plans before diagnosing business solutions. The groups specialties include retirement and health care
plan consulting, custom data administration, compliance and employee communication. Benefits
Consulting has offices in Boston, New York City, San Francisco, Chicago, Raleigh and Dallas.
About Fidelity Investments
Fidelity Investments is one of the worlds largest providers of financial services, with assets under
administration of $4.6 trillion, including managed assets of $1.9 trillion, as of December 31, 2013.
Founded in 1946, the firm is a leading provider of investment management, retirement planning,
portfolio guidance, brokerage, benefits outsourcing and many other financial products and services to
more than 20 million individuals and institutions, as well as through 5,000 financial intermediary firms.
For more information about Fidelity Investments, visit www.fidelity.com.
1 Data for the survey were collected online in November and December of 2013 by the National Business Group on
Health in conjunction with Fidelity and are based on responses from a national sample of 151 companies from numerous
industries including transportation, health care, technology, entertainment, consumer products, retail and energy. The
sizes of the companies spanned a broad range, from fewer than 2,000 to more than 50,000 employees. The results of this
survey may not be representative of all companies meeting the same criteria as those surveyed for this study.
Fidelity, Fidelity Investments and Fidelity Investments and the Pyramid Design logo are registered service marks of FMR
LLC. The National Business Group on Health is an independent entity and is not affiliated with Fidelity Investments.
2014 FMR LLC. All rights reserved.
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