Effectiveness of employee health improvement programs.

Evidence of health effects, cost-effectiveness and cost-benefit of smoking cessation, hypertension control, physical fitness and weight management programs are reviewed. For hypertension control programs, health-effectiveness has been established both in community and worksite settings. Smoking cessation programs in clinical settings achieve six to 12-month abstinence of usually 15% to 30%, but occasionally 40% to 60%. Smoking cessation groups are probably cost-beneficial and, assuming average program costs and sustained quit rates, should be able to successfully compete for employer investment dollars with respect to return on investment. One study has reported a cost savings attributable to a corporate fitness program but problems of study design and assumption involved in generating cost estimates render the conclusions somewhat speculative. Credible data regarding cost-effectiveness and cost-benefit of weight management programs in clinical or worksite settings are not yet available.