This report released by Towers Watson surveyed more than 500 large employers from November to January, finding that median health care costs are projected to increase 6.5 percent in 2010.  The survey revealed that 83 percent of responding companies have already refurbished their health care strategy or plan to do so within two years, compared to 59 percent in 2009.  According to the survey, employers also plan to encourage healthy behaviors, promote incentives for employees to become informed health care consumers, and recognize room for improvement in medical vendor program delivery.

From the Report:

Employers continue to be concerned about their workers’ poor health habits. A full two-thirds (67%) of employers identify employees’ poor health habits as a top challenge to maintaining affordable benefit coverage. More than half (58%) of employers indicate the biggest obstacle to changing employees’ health-related behavior is the lack of employee engagement, followed by lack of sufficient financial incentives to encourage participation (31%) and lack of an adequate health management program budget (30%). Employees who are not engaged are those not interested or unwilling to participate in programs designed to change health behaviors.

Full report: Purchasing Value in Health Care, Selected Findings from the 15th Annual National Business Group on Health/Towers Watson Survey Report (PDF | 559.29 KB)

Towers Watson and National Business Group on Health. (2010). Purchasing value in health care, selected findings from the 15th annual National Business Group on Health/Towers Watson survey report — 2010.