Blueprint For Balance: Insights from the 2024 Wellness Industry Report
The new demands of hybrid work models, combined with surging healthcare costs, require a strategic approach towards allocating resources for employee benefits. Wellable conducted its seventh annual Employee Wellness Industry Trends Report to guide organizations in making well-informed benefits decisions. Based on data collected directly from health insurance brokers, the report explores investment trends, decision-making factors, and vendor criteria in the employee well-being field. This year’s edition also includes a dedicated wellness program best practices section, offering actionable strategies for program implementation and success.
Access the full report for crucial insights that HR professionals and business leaders should be aware of as they navigate 2024.
Key trends include:
- Mental health remains top of mind, but execution is shifting: For the fifth consecutive year, mental health dominates all wellness solutions, with 91% of companies increasing funding in this area. However, execution is shifting from supplemental, self-service solutions (i.e. mindfulness/meditation apps) toward comprehensive wellness platforms and more personalized care (i.e. telemedicine).
- Emphasis on managing high-cost health conditions: The intense demand for weight-loss drugs like Ozempic, coupled with rising healthcare costs, are prompting companies to prioritize the proactive management of chronic health conditions. This is seen in the heightened focus on preventive solutions (i.e. health risk assessments) and weight and disease management programs. Such measures are driven by the potential for long-term cost savings and improved employee health outcomes.
- Decline in physical, on-site wellness: Investments in traditional, on-site wellness offerings like fitness classes, biometric screenings, and healthy food options are declining. Recognizing the broader scope of wellness and the needs of a hybrid workforce, companies are shifting from location-bound, physical health-dominant programs toward more flexible, personalized offerings.
- Growth of LSAs: Over half (52%) of companies plan to increase investments in lifestyle spending accounts (LSAs), which allow employees to allocate funds to expenses of their choice. This represents a shift toward personalization, autonomy, and flexibility in wellness programs.
- Rising cost of benefits: Escalating benefits costs are prompting employers to be more cost-conscious in their benefits decisions and vendor selections. Despite rising healthcare costs due to inflation, labor shortages, and costly treatments, employers are maintaining their commitment to healthcare affordability for employees.
"Wellable's Employee Wellness Industry Trends report is a direct line into the benefits decisions of thousands of employers through the trusted voices of their health insurance brokers,” says Geoff Geredien, Chief Growth Officer at Wellable. "The data reveals where businesses are investing, and why – shedding light on the challenges they face and the wellness solutions they need. Packed with actionable best practices, it's not just a report, it's a roadmap for HR leaders to build thriving wellness programs that truly move the needle in 2024."
About Wellable
Wellable is a digital platform that helps organizations create exceptional wellness programs for their employees. The platform offers holistic wellness challenges and a holistic content library that includes a wide array of on-demand fitness, mindfulness, and nutrition classes. Wellable offers a comprehensive ecosystem of other well-being solutions, including lifestyle spending accounts, on-site and virtual services, and more. Wellable works with employers, health plans, and properties of all sizes worldwide, with active users in over 40 countries.
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