Full-time city employees now have the option to join a wellness program through Allegiance Health – a goal that was approved by the City Council at this year’s visioning session.
“This is a voluntary program,” said Kim Garland, administrative director.
The program “encourages full-time employees to improve or maintain healthy lifestyle practices,” according to the agenda explanation.
Plus, if the employees meet the requirements during the benefit year, they will get a $500 reward, which can help offset the cost of their health insurance contributions, which have steadily increased during the last few years. The money can also be used to offset the cost of programs or expenses to improve their health – such as a health club membership.
The cost to the city is $180 per registered participant, plus the $500 for those employees who complete the program. And those costs have been included in the budget, Garland said.
The requirements include obtaining an annual physical, which is covered through health insurance, attend three on-site health coaching sessions, complete a personal wellness plan with a primary and a secondary goal and use health education seminars or webinars.
Council Member Dustin Suntheimer asked why the city chose Allegiance rather than Chelsea Community Hospital (CCH) and Garland said that she’d contacted CCH but the hospital was currently in the initial stages of a program, but it does not yet offer what Allegiance has in place. The Allegiance program tracks all of the employee’s personal health data for the city.
Garland said that Allegiance has found that “incentivizing” a program of this type led to better results and that they’ve found that 90 percent of employees enroll.
“We’re trying to be cutting edge,” Garland said.
Councilwoman Marcia White said that this type of program is part of the new national health care program so the city is “ahead of the game.”
The City Council unanimously approved the resolution on June 11 with Mayor Jason Lindauer absent from the meeting.
