title: Evaluating corporate wellness and promotion programs: the cases of Johnson & Johnson Corporation and Metropolitan Life Insurance Company.
abstract: In 1983 the Health Systems Management Center of Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) contracted with the Business Roundtable Health Initiatives Task Force to use their survey of members as a guide to the top firms who had taken action regarding health care costs but, more importantly, who had also evaluated that action in terms of its cost implications. The mandate was to draw together representative case studies on seven firms who met those criteria for use in Business Roundtable (BRT) educational seminars and elsewhere. These cases may provide important insight for other companies who are contemplating action regarding their health care costs. They should also lead to further research on alternative actions available and the means of evaluation that should be considered. Most importantly they may provide some methodologies for top management to choose among proposals for attacking this burgeoning corporate cost. Two of the case studies presented here, Johnson & Johnson and Metropolitan Life, examine the area of wellness promotion and sickness prevention. Both of these companies believe that the employer can have a positive impact on employee health and thus corporate costs and productivity. Both also attempted to measure the benefit although Johnson & Johnson has made a significantly larger investment in this effort. The ongoing Johnson & Johnson evaluation does hold the greatest promise for measuring economic benefits. The limited results available are positive. Although financial ramifications are difficult to demonstrate, gains in employee morale are significant.
mesh_terms: D003362:Cost-Benefit Analysis; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D006293:Health Promotion / Q000592:standards*; D007221:Industry; D009786:Occupational Health Services / Q000592:standards*; D014481:United States