The majority of large employers that offer
health benefits today also offer at least some wellness programs in an effort
to promote employee health and productivity and reduce health related
costs. Workplace wellness programs vary in the services and activities
they include, and about three-in-ten large employers use incentives to
encourage employees to participate. Depending on a program’s
characteristics, different federal rules might apply. Final regulations
recently issued by the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) would
change standards applicable to certain workplace wellness programs that use
incentives to encourage workers and their spouses to provide personal health
information. These new rules are intended to be more consistent with other
standards implementing requirements in the Affordable Care Act (ACA) that apply
to certain workplace wellness programs. Both rules seek to balance
employer interest in incentivizing workers to participate in wellness programs
against requirements that prohibit discrimination based on health status,
disability, and genetic information.
Federal
Standards for Workplace Wellness Programs.
Three
federal laws directly address workplace wellness programs within the context of
other broad rules that prohibit discrimination based on health status.
The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) prohibits discrimination by
group health plans based on an individual’s health status. ERISA makes
exceptions for wellness programs to offer premium or cost sharing discounts
based on an individual’s health status in certain circumstances. The
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) prohibits employment discrimination based
on health status and generally forbids employers from inquiring about workers’
health status, but makes an exception for medical inquiries that are conducted
as part of voluntary wellness programs. Finally, the Genetic
Information Nondiscrimination Act (GINA) prohibits employment discrimination
based on genetic information and forbids employers from asking about
individuals’ genetic information, including information about family members’
health status, or family history. Like the ADA, GINA allows an exception
for inquiries through voluntary wellness programs.
