Wellness programs keep workers in shape

By Ed Runyan

The company helps pay for gym memberships for its workers.

HOWLAND — At a time when health-care costs are rising 10 percent to 14 percent annually, two chemical factories in Ashtabula operated by Cristal Global haven’t had an increase in their health-care bill in more than six years.

As a result, the workers’ contribution to health care also has remained the same. That has made workers “real happy,” said Tim Moga, a nurse and occupational health coordinator for the factories.

The reason for the cost savings? A company wellness program, Moga said.

Moga was one of several speakers Tuesday at a seminar at Leo’s Ristorante designed to help employers start a wellness program for their organization. It was organized by Mel Milliron, educator for the Trumbull County Health Department.

Moga said the backbone of the program is a mandatory physical every two years for all factory workers. Physicals are optional for office workers.

The evaluations screen workers for vision problems, hypertension, diabetes, high cholesterol, cancer and body fat.

These evaluations are much cheaper when done in the factory, Moga said. For instance, blood work done at a hospital costs hundreds of dollars but only $19 when done at the plant.

The physicals take about 30 minutes with Moga, another 30 minutes with a doctor, and include blood work done in advance. In all, it costs the company around $200 per employee, but the company has seen a 100 percent return on the investment, Moga added.

One of the big benefits of the exams is they catch medical problems in their early stages, such as diabetes or hypertension so they can be managed before they become severe and expensive to treat. Workers there are not young, Moga said, with the average age being 50.

The plant provides stations where employees can check their blood pressure, and a healthy-living counselor is available for 15- to 20-minute, one-on-one sessions to discuss health-related issues.

The company has safety meetings every month for all employees. Among the topics covered are strokes, cardiovascular disease and influenza.

Cristal Global also offers a smoke-cessation program that awards workers a $300 payment if they remain smoke free for six months, as verified by a nicotine test. The company also helps with the cost of medicines that help smokers quit.

The company also pays $300 per year toward a gym membership and is considering a program to help pay for home-gym equipment.

The company relies heavily on free speakers from the Ohio State University Extension Service to talk on health topics at lunchtime seminars.

The Warren food service company Automatic Vendors provides vending machine food at the Ashtabula plant with a lot of choices marked with green labels indicating they promote good health. AVI sometimes hands out healthy samples to encourage people to try healthy choices, Moga said.

Another speaker Tuesday was Clyde Holmes, who works for the Youngstown office of the Ohio Bureau of Workers’ Compensation, who said it generally takes about three years for a new wellness program to demonstrate a savings.

Holmes said he gets calls from companies whose workers’ compensation bill rises dramatically because of large numbers of claims. He tries to help them establish policies to improve the health of their employees.

Roger Hornstrom, who started a wellness program at Smith’s Dairy in Orrville two years ago, said the program is voluntary. One benefit of participating is the cost of the employee’s contribution to health care is reduced by hundreds of dollars per month if he participates.

Smith Dairy is considering a “Twinkie tax” on food sold at the plant that would tack on surcharges to hamburgers but lower the cost of healthy items such as grilled chicken.

runyan@vindy.com