Families Spend A Month's Salary On Health Care, Aon Finds

Employers are beginning to move beyond this traditional cost shifting to cost control by focusing on improving the health and productivity of their employees. The survey of more than 1,100 U.S.-based organizations found that 64 percent of employers now have a benefits strategy that promotes the importance of health and productivity to their employees.

According to the survey, the amount of employers implementing specific wellness programs has increased three-fold from 2007 to 2008. For example, about 46 percent of employers are implementing smoking cessation programs this year, up from 14 percent of employers in 2007.

The survey also shows that employers have added incentives to motivate employees to participate in wellness programs, with 23 percent offering incentives to take health risk appraisals. Twenty percent of employers are providing incentives to employees who complete health risk programs such as tobacco cessation or weight management programs. The type of incentives varies, but about 22 percent of employers offer non-monetary awards such as gift cards and merchandise. Only 10 percent of organizations offer employees a premium contribution reduction.