Jump-Start Healthy Living During Wellness Week
Spring is here and with it so is Wellness Week across the county. Let the massaging, scrubbing, hydrating, zapping and peeling begin! Everyone needs a little indulgence once in a while and here are five prime local spots to do just that.
Village Health Wellness Spa at 4425 South Cobb Drive offers new clients a special of $45 for a one-hour massage in a “blissful atmosphere of modern elegance.” Local customers rave about the 13 types of massage as well as many other pampering services.
Camilla’s Day Spa at 1130 Concord Road goes against the flow of most spas and caters to a younger, hipper crowd who are devoted to Camilla’s vibe and ambience. More casual, yet retaining a calming and sophisticated atmosphere, Camilla’s is where “vintage glamour meets modern brilliance.”
As the name suggests, Natural Body Spa and Shop at 1675 Cumberland Parkway emphasizes a holistic approach to wellness supplemented with all-natural products. The soothing atmosphere easily brings out the Zen and the staff excels in “creating services that nurture you closer to your fullest potential.”
Evene Day Spa at 300 Village Green Circle ushers you into the zone when you step through its doors and “embark on a personal journey of healing and serenity.” Evene can also host groups, parties, special events and celebrations complete with catering and party favors.
Posh Spot at 3621 Vinings Slope is all about nails, skincare and massage. Try the refreshing spring special of a Citrus Peppermint Aromatherapy Massage for a fresh twist on the classic massage. Be sure to check Posh Spot’s twitter and facebook specials frequently; the half-price “power hours” are true bargains.
OPM asks health insurers to provide incentives for wellness programs
John Berry wants insurance companies to help Frankie and Flo Fed lose weight, eat better and generally take good care of their bodies.
In a speech to an America’s Health Insurance Plans meeting Thursday, Berry, director of the Office of Personnel Management, told representatives of companies providing coverage through the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program that they should encourage healthy lifestyles by offering “concrete incentives to participate in wellness and prevention activities.”
He said the agency’s “call letter,” which outlines areas companies will be expected to cover, will be issued Friday and will encourage programs that reduce obesity and “racial and ethnic disparities in health status and care.”
Berry also asked the companies to cover domestic partners of federal workers.
Noting that this week marks the first anniversary of the health reform law, Berry said his goal is to make the federal health benefits program “the innovation leader in employer-based health care.”
Because of the law, Berry said, “Over a quarter million — approximately 280,000 — more young adults, ages 22-26, will remain on their parents’ FEHB plan this year. This means fewer young adults are at risk of putting off care or suffering financially due to an accident or injury. It means peace of mind for their parents as well.”
Berry said OPM expects to save $5 million in premiums by no longer requiring health insurance brochures to be mailed, a line greeted with some applause. “The full brochures will be accessible online, and they will still be mailed upon request,” Berry said. “But this will save us a heck of a lot of money and a lot of trees.”
Some clapping also came when he urged the insurance companies to provide health coverage for same-sex partners of federal employees.
“Some HMOs are already offering coverage for domestic partners and others as a non-FEHB benefit. Thank you,” Berry said. “To those who are already doing it, thank you. I strongly encourage all of you to offer this type of affinity benefit for 2012.”
The worker would have to pay for that benefit, he explained after his speech, because federal law prohibits the government from doing so.
He said that he and President Obama plan to work with Congress to change the law. Congress, however, failed to do so last year, when Democrats had a majority in both chambers. With Republicans now running the House, chances that the measure will pass have diminished significantly.
Nonetheless, Berry said, “We’re not giving up, because no American family should be denied health insurance. It’s not right, and it’s not good business. As an employer competing for the best talent, we need a benefits package comparable with the Fortune 500 employers we’re competing against, and that means providing benefits to domestic partners.”
After his speech, Berry said, “I don’t look at this as a partisan issue.” Instead, he added, he views the extension of benefits to domestic partners as an important element in the government’s efforts to recruit and retain workers, a position he hopes Republicans will support.
“This is a critical tool for us to be competitive” with private employers, he said.
FERS reduction sought
Two Republican senators have introduced legislation that would reduce the retirement program for future federal workers. The bill, sponsored by Sens. Richard Burr (N.C.) and Tom Coburn (Okla.), would end the defined benefit portion of the Federal Employee Retirement System for new employees starting in 2013.
“The cost to taxpayers of these benefits is unsustainable, and we simply cannot afford it,” Burr said. Current employees and retirees would not be affected.
Unlike efforts to save money by tapping federal workers, Burr and Coburn’s plan also would apply to members of Congress.
“The congressional pension plan currently in place only serves to foster political careerism and should have been frozen years ago,” Burr said.
FERS currently includes a defined pension benefit paid by the government and a Thrift Savings Plan, similar to a 401(k), that has a 5 percent match. FERS recipients also may get Social Security payments.
Reining in drug costs
Rep. Stephen F. Lynch (D.-Mass.) wants to rein in prescription drug costs for federal employees by increasing government oversight of the pharmacy benefit managers who function as middlemen between health insurance companies and drug manufacturers.
“Rising prescription drug prices are a major factor pushing health-care costs higher for federal employees, retirees and their families,” said Colleen M. Kelley of the National Treasury Employees Union. “Approval of this legislation would be an excellent step forward in addressing this serious issue.”
Beaumont opens wellness center in Rochester Hills
William Beaumont Hospitals has opened a $20 million health and wellness center in Rochester Hills.
The 98,000-square-foot center offers integrative medicine, rehabilitation services, a pain clinic and private offices.
“The health and wellness center integrates the medical resources of Beaumont Hospitals and the expertise of Beaumont doctors with the amenities of a medically based fitness center that is open to everyone — patients and community members,” Eric Hunt, Beaumont Hospitals’ senior vice president of administration services, said in a statement.
The center is a collaboration involving Beaumont, Landmark Healthcare Facilities and Richard Easton, M.D, director of spine surgery at Beaumont Hospital in Troy.
“This new facility will give people with back and neck pain a single point of access for the diagnosis, treatment and rehabilitation for these often debilitating conditions,” Easton said in a statement.
Two Beaumont businesses already occupy space at the center:
• Sola Life & Fitness opened Feb. 1. The fitness center includes open exercise areas with cable and free weights, cardio exercise machines, group fitness studios, an indoor cycling room, an indoor track, a half-court gym, a four-lane lap pool, a warm-water therapy pool, hot tub, sauna, steam room and child-care and laundry services.
• Beaumont’s Integrative Medicine service opened its third location at the center in late February. It offers Thai yoga, hot-stone massages, acupuncture, Reiki therapy, guided imagery, hydrotherapy and other therapeutic and sports massage treatments.
The $6 million Beaumont center was designed by the architectural firms Hobbs+Black Architects and Leo A. Daly.
SKF USA Inc. Expands Walkingspree’s Prevention-Focused Wellness Program
SKF’s success with its pilot physical activity program with validated results prompts roll out to all U.S. and Canada locations.
After a highly successful pilot program, SKF USA Inc., a global supplier of bearings, seals, mechatronics, lubrication systems and services, and Walkingspree, a leading technology-driven prevention focused wellness company, are expanding the program to over 40 locations in the U.S. and Canada.
The goal was simple, said Raymond L. Eames III, Director of Benefits for SKF USA Inc. “Initiate a wellness program to help our employees be more active and feel healthier, as many studies have shown that a sedentary lifestyle can lead to health related problems, including diabetes, cholesterol, high blood pressure and heart disease.”
“Improving the health and education of our employees is one of our core values,” said Eames. “We wanted to show our employees that we care about them and their well being. Offering this Walkingspree program made a lot of sense to us. It was easy for everyone to participate and walking has the lowest dropout rate of any exercise regimen.”
The two companies started working together in September 2010, when Walkingspree developed a custom solution for SKF’s three-month pilot program at four locations.
The results from that program were astounding:
48 percent participation of eligible employees within the four locations, which is significant considering 37 percent of the total eligible were union employees.
82 percent earned free pedometers by reaching the program goal of 455,000 steps during the program.
Overall, participants averaged 7,971 steps per day, and of those:
24 percent averaged more than 10,000 steps.
74 percent averaged more than 6,000 steps.
66 percent of those indicating they were sedentary before starting the program shifted to being active.
Results from the participant survey were also remarkable:
60 percent said they felt healthier.
65 percent said they had more energy.
78 percent said morale toward the company increased.
Over 72 percent said pedometer walking has become a permanent lifestyle change.
Over 80 percent said the program increased camaraderie with fellow employees.
Over 98 percent said they would recommend the walking program to friends and family.
SKF and Walkingspree also included a custom marketing program to enroll union employees and eligible spouses.
“We didn’t want to exclude any of our employees from a wellness program and to our surprise, we had more union employees participate than we thought would” said Eames. “In addition, even though our program only provided prizes to employees, we had 246 spouses participate which far exceeded our expectations.”
“Including spouses really boosts excitement,” said Lisa Rousseau, Vice President of Client Service at Walkingspree. “It provides a built-in social support system and enhances engagement. SKF recognized this and built it into their program.”
Features included a USB-pedometer for accurate tracking, competitions among the participating plants plus a series of virtual walk challenges, including a walk from Miami to the Florida Keys and along California’s Pacific Coast Highway.
The new challenge for SKF employees and spouses will be to walk a million steps during the course of 200 days. Along with the health benefits of lower blood pressure, cholesterol levels and weight loss, employees could walk away with a jazzy tech toy or up to $2,500 cash. SKF will also make $6,000 worth of donations to local charities for the Top 5 SKF USA Inc. locations that have the highest step average or show the most step improvement.
ABOUT SKF
SKF is a leading global supplier of bearings, seals, mechatronics, lubrication systems and services which include technical support, maintenance and reliability services, engineering consulting and training. SKF is represented in more than 130 countries and has 15,000 distributor locations worldwide. Annual sales in 2010 were SEK 61,029 million (~$9.4 billion) and the number of employees was 44,742.
