The utilization of employee wellness programs by government, business and industry: a strategic evaluation.

This study ascertains the extent of use of employee wellness programs by a cross section of organizations in the United States. Nearly one-thousand organizational personnel professionals responded to a mail survey asking if their organization provided specific wellness services within five areas: (1) incentive programs, (2) exercise and fitness programs, (3) health screening and prevention, (4) nutritional aid, and (5) educational programs. Organizations were then categorized using Standard Industrial Classification (SIC) codes. The results are strategically valuable to both users and providers of wellness products, providing bench-mark data which: (1) allows comparisons of wellness offerings among similar organizations and across organizational types, and (2) provides product development and segmentation guidance to hospitals and other providers of wellness products.