BILL REQ. #:  S-3665.2 

Read first time 01/23/12.   Referred to Committee on Health & Long-Term Care.

     AN ACT Relating to state employee wellness and productivity; amending RCW 41.05.540; and creating a new section.

BE IT ENACTED BY THE LEGISLATURE OF THE STATE OF WASHINGTON:

NEW SECTION.  Sec. 1   (1) Employee health and productivity is critical to the success and efficiency of any business, including the business functions in state agencies. Businesses that invest in the health and wellness of their employees see returns on their investment with savings in health care costs, employee productivity, a reduction of absenteeism, and increases in the average number of healthy hours worked per employee.
     (2) Successful employee wellness programs are built with a multipronged strategy that link the benefit plan design, and work place supports that include health promotion, education, and on-site access to supportive services.
     (3) The health care authority is the agency responsible for employee health across all state agencies and higher education institutions, and is the ideal agency to build a broad strategy to support employee health and wellness and support participating agencies in assisting employee wellness and business productivity, with expansion of the employee health and wellness program through thoughtful modification of the benefit design and expansion of on-site wellness supports.

Sec. 2   RCW 41.05.540 and 2007 c 259 s 40 are each amended to read as follows:
     (1) The health care authority, in coordination with the ((department of health,)) health plans participating in public employees' benefits board programs((,)) and the ((University of Washington's center for health promotion, shall establish)) state agencies shall expand and maintain a state employee health and wellness program focused on reducing the health risks and improving the health status of state employees((,)) and dependents((, and retirees)) enrolled in the public employees' benefits board. The program shall use public and private sector best practices to achieve goals of measurable health outcomes, measurable productivity improvements, positive impact on the cost of medical care, and positive return on investment. The program shall establish standards for health promotion and disease prevention activities, and develop a mechanism to update standards as evidence-based research brings new information and best practices forward.
     (2) The state employee health and wellness program shall:
     (a) Provide technical assistance and other services as needed to wellness staff in all state agencies and institutions of higher education by; building on the success with the worksite wellness demonstrations and expanding the Washington worksite wellness program;
     (b) Develop effective communication tools and ongoing training for wellness staff;
     (c) ((Contract)) Complete consolidated contracting with outside vendors for ((evaluation of program goals;
     (d) Strongly encourage the widespread completion of online health assessment tools for all state employees, dependents, and retirees. The health assessment tool must be voluntary and confidential. Health assessment data and claims data shall be used to:
     (i) Engage state agencies and institutions of higher education in providing evidence-based programs targeted at reducing identified health risks;
     (ii) Guide contracting with third-party vendors to implement behavior change tools for targeted high-risk populations; and
     (iii) Guide the benefit structure for state employees, dependents, and retirees to include covered services and medications known to manage and reduce health risks)) worksite wellness activities such as, but not limited to, on-site flu vaccination clinics, mobile mammography, healthy weight control programs, chronic disease management courses, and other evidence-based programs that support employee health and wellness;
     (d) Develop and refine common core data elements for health plans and agency worksites to assist with comparable measurement and assessment of outcomes;
     (e) Gather and monitor data from agencies on the worksite wellness activities and outcomes including impacts on productivity and employee wellness, and complete an analysis and summary of the outcomes annually;
     (f) Coordinate with the public employees benefits board to design a benefit package that more strongly encourages the use of high-value services and member engagement in health assessment and wellness programs. A benefit design must incorporate a financial incentive for completing a health assessment and participating in health activities as an integral structural component in the benefit design rather than as a freestanding assessment tool;
     (g) Ensure the design of the health and wellness program and benefit structure complement the development of chronic care management and medical home models consistent with the requirements of RCW 41.05.023 and 41.05.670.
     (3) ((The health care authority shall report to the legislature in December 2008 and December 2010 on outcome goals for the employee health program.)) To expand the employee health and wellness program and build a strategic link with the benefit design and worksite supports, the health care authority must engage in collaborative discussions with enrollees in the public employees benefits board program, the various employee unions representing employees, and state agencies. Consolidated recommendations from all participants on the benefit design and incentive structure must be shared with the board for consideration.