All About Wellness Benefits in Health Insurance Plans You Should Know About!

As per the American Heart Association, one can improve life expectancy if one follows the basic principles of good health. These rules include not smoking, maintaining a healthy weight, getting regular physical exercise, eating a healthy diet, and kicking the excessive alcohol consumption habit.

It can improve the life expectancy of females by 14 years for females ( at 50), and the males can improve their life expectancy by 12 years for males.

Well, did you know that health insurance can also help in disease prevention apart from treating diseases? In most cases, health insurance includes preventive measures such as immunizations, various cancer screenings, and in some cases quitting tobacco intervention.

Yes, they are all covered in full by your health plan. But more often than not, we are oblivious to these obvious perks. Let’s dig deep here about the many wellness programs that you can enjoy when you buy a health insurance policy for yourself and your family.

Insurers and Employers Giving Wellness a Try

The wellness programs are varied, including gym memberships, massage therapy, weight-loss clinics, weight-loss surgery, stress management programs, and tobacco cessation programs.

Well, if you are surprised and planning to give your health insurance policy another perusal, know this; some health insurance companies even offer big discounts on electric toothbrushes to prevent cavities. Wellness programs are mostly part of employer-sponsored health coverage, although there are separate plans that you can buy.

As per the US Centers for Disease Control, almost half of the American workplaces offer some wellness program for their workers. By 2019, there has been a sharp rise in insurance companies offering wellness programs for employees as much as 84%. Five of the best health insurance companies in the U.S. all offer various wellness programs for employers to include in their employee health benefits package. Also, various wellness program vendors provide customized wellness packages catering to the needs of employers.

Gym Memberships and Weight Loss Programs

Prevention is better than cure, and going by this adage. You must make the most of the perks available to you. Some of the perks include gym membership. Many health insurance plans offer lucrative discounts on specific health club memberships, and they can enjoy discounts, 10% to 50% off the normal price.

Let’s say your gym membership charges $30 a month out of your checking account. A half-off discount will save you $15 each month. People who are part of Medicare Advantage include gym memberships via their Silver Sneakers program.

Silver Sneakers is a wellness program that offers access to virtual fitness classes online, and the members can win a membership to 16,000 gyms in the U.S. Apart from gym memberships, there are weight loss programs. And there have been several corporate wellness programs to help members lose weight and reach their ideal weight. You can also avail commercially viable weight-loss programs such as Weight Watchers, Jenny Craig, and NutriSystem.

Lasik and Other Wellness Services

There are some insurers and corporate wellness programs that offer the spectacle-free program. Yes, we are talking about the LASIK eye surgery. Lasik eye surgeries do not come cheap, and these programs can help lead you to generous savings.

Other non-conventional health care practices are becoming more and more popular these days, such as Acupuncture, massage, and chiropractic services. Well, you can also avail these effective all-natural practices.

These health insurance plans can give a regular benefits package that includes quality acupuncturists, massage therapists, and chiropractors. You can also get access to a free fitness tracker, a digital tool to check on your health parameters, such as exercise, sleep, and more. Some of these trackers include Garmins, Apple Watches, and Fitbits.

Insurance Premiums Offers on Wellness Programs

An employer’s wellness program can offer mammoth discounts of as much as 50%. Get to know about these wellness programs from your company or your health insurance provider. There are a lot many options in wellness programs that you may not know all about. Call your health care provider or insurance provider to know what kind of wellness programs they may offer.

You may find that your health coverage costs are a lot less if you participate in your employer’s wellness program. It is time to know all about all the wellness programs that your company offers today.