EMPLOYER HEALTH BLOG

The Mississippi Business Group on Health in collaboration with the Mississippi Public Health Association is supporting the promotion of National Public Health Week in 2016. NPHW is a national effort to make American the world's healthiest nation in one generation. 

The Mississippi Public Health Association is promoting NPHW with a variety events across the state from universities, to health departments, and some employers. Visit their site for more information. 

Employer members of the MSBGH are offering a variety of healthy programs and resources supporting the health and wellbeing for their employees. Levi Strauss and Company located in Madison County is holding it's annual Health Fair for employees during the week. Butler Snow Law Firm offers healthy vending and catering for its employees along with having bicycles available for them to ride during the day. Trustmark National Bank has an onsite wellness clinic at their corporate offices for their employees to visit and receive care and health coaching. Southern Farm Bureau Life Insurance Company offers onsite fitness classes after work for employees and their dependents to participate. 

"We have many great examples of our members who are promoting health to their employees and their families by offering programs and resources at work, at home, and in the communities where their employees live. Many of our members also support local health efforts which is part of our efforts to promote Healthy Workplaces, Healthy Communities" states Murray Harber, Executive Director, Mississippi Business Group on Health. 

Several members and key leaders of the Mississippi Business Group on Health were part of a Employer-led Onsite and Near-site Clinic Conference last week in Memphis, TN. The event was a collaboration of the MSBGH, the Memphis Business Group on Health, HealthCare 21, and the National Association of Workplace Health Centers and was held at the Holiday Inn on the campus of the University of Memphis. Jim Brown, the current President of MSBGH and VP and Benefits Manager at Trustmark National Bank shared their story of offering an onsite clinic at the corporate office in downtown Jackson, MS. Matt Ginn, Manager of Corporate Communications, Training, and Health Promotion at Southern Farm Bureau Life Insurance shared their evolution of their employer health initiative including their onsite clinic and population health management strategy. 

Murray Harber, Executive Director of the Mississippi Business Group on Health states, "Several of our members have been using onsite clinics as a strategy to control cost and improve the health of their employer populations. We were well represented at the meeting last week and are proud to support our members by sharing their stories with other employers in the Mid-South region. We are working with our neighboring coalitions to hold more joint meetings as many of our members also have employees in those neighboring states."

To read more about the clinic conference, please refer to the article in Commercial Appeal this past weekend. 

The application process for being a Recognized Healthy Workplace and competition for being Mississippi's Healthiest Workplace are now open. The program is a collaboration between the Mississippi Business Group on Health, the Mississippi Business Journal, the Mississippi State Department of Health, and the Mississippi Association of Self Insurers. 

These initiatives recognizes employers for meeting national standards in employer health management and awards the leading companies in both the public and private sectors. Last year's winners were Southern Farm Bureau Life Insurance Company, Fleet Feet Sports Jackson, the Mississippi Department of Mental Health, and the Mississippi Fire Academy. 

Read more about the 2015 winners.

The Mississippi Business Group on Health in conjunction with its partners will be holding a series of meetings across the state to discuss "The Value of Employer Health and Health Care Quality".  These meetings will bring together employers and health care providers and discuss meaningful solutions to the rising cost of health care including population health management, value-based benefit designs, and workplace wellness. Meetings will be held in Hattiesburg, Jackson, and Southaven.  For registration information, please visit the events section on at www.msbgh.org. 

Coming soon is the new healthy employer recognition program along with an expanded healthiest workplace awards. Learn more about the 2015 winners at this link. Learn what it takes to be a healthy workplace in our toolkit and toolbox. 

Mississippi employers who pay taxes to the state might have an opportunity to get a tax credit for offering employer health programs that meet specific criteria. What a great economic development tool to reward current MS employers and attract possible employers to the state. What do you think?

Click here for a great article on selecting the right partners as a business leader and/or human resource professional.