8.17.10 | Brandon Glenn

Medical Mutual’s employee health program gets national award

Medical Mutual of Ohio has received a national award for its employee wellness program that has improved health and lowered costs, according to a nonprofit group affiliated with former Surgeon General C. Everett Koop.

Employee participation in the company’s health promotion program rose to 87 percent in 2008 from 43 percent in 2003. A cost analysis found that those who participated at a higher level in the program had lower increases in healthcare costs and short-term disability, according to a statement from The Health Project, which describes itself as a public-private partnership aimed at changing Americans’ attitudes and behaviors towards health.

Medical Mutual’s Wellness for Life program features health assessments and biometric screenings, and takes a data-driven approach, according to a statement from the company.

The Health Project named two other winners of its C. Everett Koop National Health Award — drugmaker Pfizer and car manufacturer Volvo Group.

Koop serves as the nonprofit’s honorary chairman. The group’s board members include representatives from the University of Pennsylvania Schools of Medicine and Nursing, IBM Integrated Health Services and William H. Mercer Inc.