ERIC Outraged over Latest Wellness Suit Brought by EEOC

On Monday, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) filed a memorandum in Federal District Court in Minnesota asking for a Temporary Restraining Order (TRO), alleging that wellness programs sponsored by Honeywell violated both the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Genetic Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA).

“This is an outrageous development, and one that could potentially jeopardize not only the health of America’s workers, but also that of their spouses,” said Gretchen Young, ERIC Senior Vice President for Health Policy.

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Wellness, wellness, wellness!!!

Wellness programs have been gaining a lot of attention. The Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) recently held a hearing to explore wellness programs in greater detail. The speakers included Amy Moore on behalf of the ERISA Industry Committee (ERIC). The EEOC has posted a video of the hearing as well as materials on their website. EEOC Commissioners also issued statements about the need for the EEOC to issue guidance in this area. ERIC members can read a more in-depth analysis of the hearing here.

Wellness has also been the focus of several different studies. One of these studies found that 82% of companies offer some form of incentives and/or disincentives in their wellness programs. Companies indicated that 98% of the feedback they received from employees was “somewhat positive” to “very positive.” Another study found a 9% increase in the number of companies offering wellness programs since 2009.

A recent article in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine also focused on wellness programs. It reviews Johnson & Johnson’s wellness program, and the increasing role of wellness programs in improving employee health and morale, while also reducing health care costs.

Additionally, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS), U.S. Department of Labor, and U.S. Department of Health and Human Services are expected to finalize their proposed regulations on wellness very soon.

ERIC members and guests can learn more about the latest news on wellness on the FocusOn Conference Call: Wellness – the New and Continuing Challenges on May 21st at 2 pm – 3 pm ET. ERIC members and trial members can sign up here. If your company is not yet an ERIC member and you would like to request to attend the call, please contact Adreanne Cooper at acooper@eric.org.

For more information:

• EEOC Hearing Materials
• In-Depth Analysis of Hearing (ERIC Members only)
• ERIC Testimony at EEOC Hearing
• American Journal of Preventive Medicine Article
• Wellness Study - For Many Employers, Employee Wellness is No Longer Merely an Option
• Wellness Study - New Employer Survey Finds Growing Use of Outcomes-Based Incentives, Majority Using Either Carrot or Stick to Motivate Healthy Employee Behaviors
• FocusOn Conference Call: Wellness – the New and Continuing Challenges

ERIC Testifies at EEOC Wellness Hearing

The ERISA Industry Committee (ERIC) strongly encouraged the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) to adopt guidance making clear that incentive-based workplace wellness programs are permissible in order to allow these programs to expand and succeed. Amy Moore of Covington & Burling LLP testified on behalf of ERIC.

ERIC believes that an effective workplace wellness program is one of the few programs that can reduce future health care costs while simultaneously providing tangible benefits to employees and employers alike. Indeed, “workplace wellness programs have proved effective in containing health costs, reducing disability claims, and improving workers’ productivity,” Moore testified. She further noted that, “Employees value these programs, and they benefit from the programs’ emphasis on promoting good health and addressing health problems before the problems become more serious and more costly to treat.”

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