National Business Group on Health Honors 66 U.S. Employers With "Best Employers for Healthy Lifestyles" Awards

WASHINGTON, June 27, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- The National Business Group on Health today honored 66 U.S. employers for their ongoing commitment to promoting healthy work environments and encouraging workers to live healthier lifestyles. The honored employers, including 15 first-time winners, were presented with "2012 Best Employers for Healthy Lifestyles" awards at the Business Group's Institute on Innovation in Workforce Well-being Leadership Summit held in Washington, DC.

Now in its eighth year, the Best Employers for Healthy Lifestyles awards annually acknowledge those employers that have responded to the urgent need to improve their employees' health, productivity and quality of life. The underlying goal of the program is to encourage all employers to take action.

Helen Darling, President and CEO of the National Business Group on Health, commented:  "With health care benefit costs continuing to rise at unacceptable levels, more and more employers are focusing on health improvement programs at the workplace – and with good reason.  One of the keys to controlling costs is to keep employees and their families healthy.  All of the employers we are recognizing this year are fully committed to offering innovative workplace programs that encourage employees and their families to take control of their health and live healthier lifestyles."

"We are very proud to honor this year's winning companies for their leadership and innovation in providing workplace well-being programs for their employees and families," said LuAnn Heinen, Vice President of the National Business Group on Health, who has overseen the awards program since its inception in 2005.  "From offering onsite medical clinics and physical activity initiatives to health advocacy, coaching and weight management programs, these forward-thinking companies are leading the way in promoting healthy lifestyles. These efforts will have long-lasting positive results for employers, employees and their families and can be used as examples by other companies looking to promote healthy lifestyles in workplaces."  

Winners of the 2012 Best Employers for Healthy Lifestyles awards were honored in one of two categories: Platinum, for established workplace well-being programs with measurable success and documented outcomes; and Gold, for making cultural and environmental changes and developing comprehensive programs that support employees' healthy lifestyle goals.

The National Business Group on Health also presented inaugural awards to companies in four special areas.  These include:

• Best Stress Management Intervention – Aetna
• Best Communication Tactics – American Express
• Best Family Engagement – Baptist Health South Florida
• Best Community Outreach – Kimberly-Clark Corporation

Additionally, Kimberly-Clark Corporation and Hewlett-Packard Company were presented with Global Distinction awards in recognition of their efforts to enhance the physical, psychological and emotional health, well-being and productivity of global employees and their dependents.  

The winners in each category are:

PLATINUM

Aetna
Baptist Health South Florida
Campbell Soup Company
Cardinal Health
Carolinas HealthCare System*
Cerner Corporation
Cigna
CVS Caremark
Dell Inc.
Franciscan Missionaries of Our Lady Health System*
General Board of Pension and Health Benefits of the United Methodist Church*
Healthways, Inc.
H.J. Heinz Company
JP Morgan Chase & Co.
Kaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente Northern California Region
Mayo Clinic
Medtronic
Michelin North America, Inc.
NextEra Energy Inc.
PepsiCo
Quest Diagnostics
Texas Instruments
The Boeing Company
Unilever
UnitedHealth Group
University of Pittsburgh Medical Center/UPMC Health Plan
Unum
Visant Corporation
WellPoint, Inc.  

GOLD

Accenture, LLC
American Airlines*
American Express
ARAMARK
Assurant, Inc.*
BD
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Alabama
Boehringer Ingelheim Pharmaceuticals, Inc.
BP America Inc.*
Chesapeake Energy Corporation*
Chrysler Group LLC
Compass Group
DTE Energy*
Erie Insurance
Geisinger Health System*
General Dynamics Electric Boat
General Mills
Georgia Power/Southern Company
Hewlett-Packard Company **
Ingersoll Rand Company*
KeyBank*
Kimberly-Clark Corporation* **
McKesson Corporation*
Medical Mutual and its Family of Companies
Mercy Health
Paychex, Inc.
Pitney Bowes Inc.
PNC Financial Services Group, Inc.*
Providence Health & Services Alaska*
Saint-Gobain
Sprint
State Farm Mutual Automobile Insurance Company
Texas Health Resources
The Home Depot
Union Pacific Railroad
Verizon Communications

 * Denotes first time winner
** Denotes global distinction

About the National Business Group on Health

The National Business Group on Health is the nation's only non-profit, membership organization of large employers devoted exclusively to finding innovative and forward-thinking solutions to their most important health care and related benefits issues and to being the voice for large employers on national health care issues. The Business Group, whose 343 members include 64 of the Fortune 100, identifies, develops and shares best practices in health benefits, disability, health and productivity, related paid time off and work/life balance issues. Business Group members provide health coverage for more than 55 million U.S. workers, retirees and their families. For more information, visit www.businessgrouphealth.org.

SOURCE National Business Group on Health