Page 268 - How America's Best Places to Work Inspire Extra Effort in Extraordinary Times

Employee Well-Being C255

: UNPAID MEDICAL BILLS
More and more Americans are struggling to avert a significant cri-
sis—unpaid medical bills. The New York Times cites two studies by
the Kaiser Family Foundation and the Center for Studying Health
System Change, which were completed in 2008 before the financial
markets reached a state of crisis. Policy analysts said the findings
underscored the additional strain that medical care had placed on
working Americans. 3

: SOARING PREMIUM COSTS
In Omaha, Nebraska, the city’s health care costs increased 17 per-
cent from 2007 to 2008—a staggering burden for the 3,800 em-
ployees and retirees. Sad to say, this increase is common for many
4
employers.

: RETIREMENT WORRIES
In March of 2009 only one in three Americans believed they
would be able to fully retire as huge losses in home and stock
prices dented their confidence in the future. Just 32 percent of
Americans thought they could someday stop working altogether,
down from 39 percent from the 2008 survey. That represented an
18 percent decrease in just one year, and a 22 percent decline from
the 2007 survey. “Americans anticipate having to work longer, as
their nest eggs have been shrinking and the economy has made
it harder to save,” said Chris Moloney, chief marketing officer at
Scottrade. 5

Some diseases, which many would consider highly preventable, are
skyrocketing in claim activity.

: THE COST OF DISEASE MISMANAGEMENT—DIABETES
As diabetes is rapidly becoming one of the world’s most common
diseases, its financial cost has been mounting—to well over $200
billion a year in the United States alone. One recent study put the
total at $218 billion in 2007. 6