Nationwide Better Health Introduces Industry-First Benefits Coaching Program

Nationwide Better HealthSM, a leading provider of health and productivity management solutions, announces the launch of its new benefits coaching program. The first-of-its-kind program is designed to help individuals optimize their use of all of the benefits offered by their employer, resulting in higher satisfaction with the benefits available. Additionally, the program educates employees about how to minimize their current and future health care costs, helping them secure a healthy future both physically and fiscally.

Health care consumerism is on the rise, as 47 percent of employers now have a consumer-driven health plan in place for their employees1. The upward trend puts individuals in a position to take responsibility for their personal health care choices, yet 93 percent of Americans report they are not well prepared to deal with their future health care costs2.

There remains a large gap in employees’ understanding of consumer-driven health care, including the advantages of high-deductible health plans and accompanying health savings accounts. The Nationwide Better Health benefits coaching program was created to help employees receive education about the employer-sponsored benefits available to them and determine which benefits are best matched to their lifestyle, personal and family needs.

“There’s no denying that an individual’s health status directly impacts their benefits choices, especially when it comes to selecting a health plan and tax-preferred account options, disability, long-term care and life insurance elections,” said Holly Snyder, president of Nationwide Better Health. “By offering the benefits coaching program alongside our lifestyle health and disease management programs, we're also providing individuals with the necessary tools to improve their health, which will improve their wealth.”

With the Nationwide Better Health benefits coaching program, dedicated benefits coaches help employees take advantage of the traditional and non-traditional benefits that are right for their current lifestyle and personal situation. The program encourages employees to take accountability for their own health-related costs, while receiving one-on-one support preparing for the open enrollment benefits process. In turn, better informed employees help control health care costs for employers.

The costs associated with living an unhealthy lifestyle are hard to ignore. The lifetime medical costs for five preventable and manageable diseases and conditions (hypertension, diabetes, heart disease, stroke and high cholesterol) among moderately obese people are $10,000 higher than among people at a healthy weight3. Nationwide Better Health has coupled its Nationwide Better Health CheckSM– health risk assessment – with the benefits coaching program to give participants an accurate picture of their current health and assess what they can do to safeguard their health and wealth as they travel through the program.

“Our benefits coaching program is all about empowering employees to make smart lifestyle and financial choices to secure their future happiness,” continued Snyder. “A person’s lifestyle choices can either positively or negatively impact their nest egg – and as research shows, 70 percent of chronic conditions are costly yet avoidable. During times of economic instability, it makes sense for people to take proper care of their health to avoid a physical condition that could lead to financial catastrophe.”

Some of the topics discussed between the benefits coach and participant include:

• Selecting the best benefits elections for the individual and their family, including health care plans, tax-preferred spending and savings accounts, disability and life insurance, 401(k) plans and more
• Comparing benefit plan options and costs
• Reviewing the health and wellness services currently provided by their employer to encourage a healthy lifestyle
• Developing a personalized action plan to meet the individual’s goals and objectives
• Receiving preventive health guidelines and money-saving tips

Early satisfaction results from participants who have completed the Nationwide Better Health benefits coaching program demonstrate that:

• 90 percent are more confident about choosing the best benefits for their situation
• 79 percent agree they will get more value from the benefits their employer offers
• 63 percent are more satisfied with the benefits their employer offers
• 81 percent agree they will take steps to improve their health, while 86 agree they will take steps to improve their wealth

Nationwide Better Health’s benefits coaching offering is part of its comprehensive health and wellness program focused on weight management, nutrition, stress management, tobacco cessation and physical activity.

About Nationwide Better Health

Nationwide Better HealthSM, a subsidiary of Nationwide®, is a leading provider of health and productivity management solutions, aimed at improving the health and productivity of America’s workforce. Nationwide Better Health is the first company to truly integrate the best collection of health and productivity services available today, including health and wellness, and disease, disability, absence, medical and maternity management. The company’s offerings work together and independently to address both sides of the cost equation: increased efficiency of health and productivity programs and better employee health and well-being to reduce health care-related costs. For more information, call 866.404.6924 or visit: www.nwbetterhealth.com.

Nationwide Better Health with the Nationwide framemark and On Your Side is a federally registered service mark, and Nationwide Better Health and Nationwide Better Health Check are service marks of Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company.

1 Watson Wyatt/NBGH, The One Percent Strategy: Lessons Learned from the Best Performers, 2008

2 Deloitte, 2008 Survey of Health Care Consumer

3 Preventing chronic diseases: Investing Wisely in Health, US Department of Health and Human Services