Consumer-Driven Health Accounts & Wearables in Wellness

On this week's program, hosts Doug Field, Ron Bachman and Brent Macy are live in the studio with special guests from Flex and Healthiest Employers for conversations on consumer-driven health accounts (HSAs, HRAs and FSAs) and the role of wearable devices in workplace wellness programs.

The first guest on the show will be David Lindgren, Senior Manager, Compliance & Public Affairs, Flexible Benefit Service Corporation (Flex). With the ACA weighing on employers’ every health care decision, it is no surprise that they are doing whatever they can to stabilize costs for themselves, while better engaging their employees into the cost-sharing process. The integration of consumer-driven health accounts has rapidly emerged at the workplace as a key strategy to combat rising health care costs. As an advocate in this marketplace, Flex pondered how many employers are offering these plans, how offer rates differ by employer size and, in light of the ACA, what the future holds for their growth or demise. In this segment, David and the hosts will discuss the key findings from a recent survey that collected responses from more than 500 employers of all sizes throughout the U.S.

The second guest on this week's program will be Rod Reasen, Chief Executive Officer of Healthiest Employers. The wearable movement is here. In fact, according to a new survey from Healthiest Employers, 54 percent of employers are looking to purchase wearables in the next twelve months. Yet, only seven percent have a plan to use the data to improve health. In this interview, Rod and the hosts will outline what employers want in an a wearable, the reasons to purchase and how to “connect the dots” between activity and outcomes.