Many big companies are looking for ways to cut back on rising health insurance costs. With the costs rising so rapidly they are constantly looking for new ways to reduce cost to the company while still providing employees with the health insurance benefits they need for themselves and for their families.
There are many ways for companies to cut insurance costs, but one new and very popular way is by offering HRAs to their employees. HRA stands for health risk assessment, and basically the employee allows the company to check their current health and provide ways that they could become healthier in the future.
Different companies do HRAs differently. Some companies offer their employees a questionnaire and then advise them based on that. Some companies do height, weight, body mass index and basic blood tests for cholesterol and blood sugar. Either way, they try to point out areas that their employees need to work on and how they can go about living a healthier lifestyle.
If you are not familiar with HRA screenings, you may wonder what the benefit of them is. The company usually gives some kind of monetary assessment. They would either add a little bit of money onto an employees paycheck or deduct money off the employee’s health insurance premiums. This is assumed to motivate people to become healthier and get seen.
HRA screenings are proving to be very beneficial in cutting health care costs as well as joining employer and employee in a common goal. Becoming healthier as a person, as well as a company is truly a benefit to both parties.
