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Permalink Reply by Maureen Sharib on August 12, 2008 at 10:22am

Here's something your group might find interesting.
As health costs rise, companies weigh the risk of opening in areas with high obestiy rates.

You've heard of the steps companies are taking to cut their health care costs: They're banning smoking, offering yoga and wellness classes, even putting healthy snacks in vending machines.

But what steps do companies take before they even open?

In a trend that might sound extreme, a growing body of evidence suggests that some companies are factoring health into the way they select sites. Among other considerations, companies could be eyeing obesity rates before deciding where to put new plants and offices...

The idea is that by examining obesity rates and avoiding opening where more obese people live, companies can cut their future health care costs. For the Carolinas, that could spell trouble, given that the majority of residents are tipping the scales.

No companies that have recently opened sites in the Carolinas have acknowledged they consider such factors, and state and county economic development officials say companies have not asked them about obesity rates. But site selection consultants say considering the health of the potential work force is something that makes sense given rising health care costs -- and that it's likely to become more widespread.

The amount companies are paying in insurance costs is reason enough to be targeting healthy employees. Health insurance premiums grew 78 percent between 2002 and 2007, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation, while the share of premiums paid by workers has held fairly steady. Between 1999 and 2005, the average cost to employers for health insurance per hour for each employee rose from $1.60 to $2.59. In an average 40-hour week, that's $103.20 spent on health care for each employee.

Obese workers make the situation worse for employers. In addition to missing more days of work, researchers from RTI International have found those with high levels of obesity cost $460 to $2,500 per year in additional medical expenses. The cost of obesity at a company with 1,000 workers was pegged at an extra $285,000 a year, RTI's 2005 study found.

Interesting reading here.
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