Health Care Communication Truths                                                 "Start Communicating for Change"

 

  • Unhealthy lifestyles are putting our nation's workforce and economy at risk.

  • The average person lacks information and understanding to make informed health care decisions.

  • To reduce costs and increase employee productivity, employers need to shift their focus from treatment to prevention and from information dissemination to communication.

  • Engaging consumers requires a fresh approach — using marketing and advertising techniques to grab people's attention and motivate them to take action.

  • To build engagement you must first build awareness, understanding and trust by meeting the needs of your audience.

 

  1. Unhealthy lifestyles are putting our nation's workforce and economy at risk.

    • The 2007 U.S. health care market constituted approximately 16% of the overall gross domestic product.
      National Business Group on Health Web Site, Health Expenditure Data, 2007

    • More than half of U.S. adults are overweight (64.5%) and nearly one-third (30.5%) are obese. Obesity carries annual health care costs of about $100 billion.
      American Obesity Association Web Site, 2005

    • More than a quarter of U.S. health care costs are related to physical inactivity, overweight and obesity.
      F is for Fat, Trust for America's Health, 2007


  2. While this risk could be reduced with greater consumer accountability, the average person lacks information and understanding to make informed health care decisions.

    • Although 61% of employees considered their understanding of health insurance terminology to be very good, about 56% did not know what a health savings account was, and 50% could not define a flexible spending account or a health reimbursement account. Another 13% did not know what a copayment was.
      Fidelity Investments Study, Employee Benefit News, October 2007

    • Seventy-five percent of consumers across age groups agree they are overwhelmed by the amount of media available to them.
      NBC Research, MediaPost Publications, June 2007

  3. To reduce costs and increase productivity, employers need to shift their focus from treatment to prevention and from information dissemination to communication.

    • For every dollar spent on putting wellness programs in place, employers have seen an average reduction of $2.45 in medical claims. While it takes about 18 months to start seeing such returns, the longer the programs are in place, the more health care costs can be reduced.
      Principle Financial Group study, published in Workforce Management magazine, January 2008

    • About 59% of workers would like their employer to suggest benefits that would be appropriate for their life stage, and 22% say specific, tailored instructions would improve their open enrollment experience.
      MetLife study, Employee Benefit News, October 2007

  4. Engaging consumers requires a fresh new approach to health care communication, using marketing and advertising techniques to grab people's attention and motivate them to take action.

    • In 2006, American workers received an average of 134 e-mails daily, with volume expected to reach nearly 2.7 trillion by the end of 2007. Nine out of every 10 e-mails will be spam.
      2007 CareerBuilder.com

    • Employees spend an average of 1.4 hours reviewing their benefit plans, compared to 6.8 hours before purchasing a car, 4.9 hours doing holiday shopping, and 1.3 hours before purchasing a pair of shoes.
      Guardian consumer study, "Spending More Time on Benefit Decisions," Employee Benefit News, August 2007

  5. To build engagement you must first build awareness, understanding and trust by meeting the needs of your audience.

    • Fifty-four percent of American workers said health benefits are more important to them than higher wages.
      National Payroll Association, 2006

    • Only 51% of workers read their entire open enrollment package, while 19% discuss it with Human Resources and 13% talk to friends to help make benefit decisions.
      Prudential survey, Employee Benefit News, October 2007

    • Only 35% of employees and 21% of employers rate benefits communications as "highly effective."
      Prudential survey, Employee Benefit News, October 2007