Elevating Health And Wellness Through Whole-Health Insights And Incentives

Understanding Whole Health: More Than Physical Wellness

When employers think about benefits, physical health often takes the spotlight. But today’s evolving workforce demands a more expansive approach — one that includes physical, behavioral, and social drivers. Health partners like Anthem recognize that 80% of health is driven by where we live, our financial circumstances, our access to affordable and nutritious foods, and other nonmedical factors. This means supporting every aspect of an employee’s well-being and addressing barriers to social drivers of health are critical. 

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) supports this view through its Total Worker Health^® model, emphasizing that coordinated health efforts between work and nonwork conditions lead to improved retention, job satisfaction, and community reputation. In addition, Gallup research shows employees who feel their employer truly cares about their well-being are 69% less likely to actively look for a new job. 

How Incentives Help Drive Whole-Health And Engagement

Employees facing the greatest health and wellness challenges often have the most to gain — and they’re ready to take action. Anthem’s parent company’s whole-health index research found that individuals with the lowest level of overall health are twice as likely to engage and earn incentives. Why is this important? When employees earn incentives that are designed to improve adherence to preventive health activities, like completing a cancer screening or wellness exam, healthcare costs can decrease. Here are some noteworthy facts:

• According to the American Cancer Society, colorectal cancer is the second leading cause of cancer death, yet the CDC found 1 in 3 eligible adults remain unscreened.  
• The 2024-2025 Breast Cancer Facts & Figures research by the American Cancer Society found only 67% of eligible women complete their breast cancer screening, despite early detection improving 5-year survival rates to over 99%.

Preventive health activities reduce hospitalizations by identifying risks before they escalate into emergencies or chronic complications. Closing the gap for preventive health activities is crucial and, according to Anthem internal research, employees with incentives are 3.8 times more likely to complete an activity like an annual wellness exam. Health partners like Anthem offer a strategic approach to incentives with preventive care, condition management, and overall wellness activities so that employees of varying levels of health have earning opportunities.

Improving Employee Health And Wellness, Together

By creating a shift in the whole health of your workforce, helping close care gaps with incentives, and supporting overall preventive care, employers can improve population health, better manage healthcare costs, and create a stronger future for their teams.