Are You and Your Workers Ready for the Summer Heat?

Wednesday, May 23, 2012 3:00 AM
by Chris Kilbourne

Source: https://safetydailyadvisor.blr.com

Every year, thousands of workers become sick from exposure to heat, and some even die. But your people don't have to suffer. These illnesses and deaths are preventable.

With summer just around the corner and heat and humidity on the rise, many employers need to start thinking about and planning to prevent employee heat-related illness.

Although OSHA doesn't have a specific standard that covers working in hot conditions, under the General Duty Clause of the OSH Act, you nevertheless have a duty to protect workers from recognized serious hazards in the workplace, including heat-related hazards.

This means right off the bat you need answers to three very important questions.

What Is Heat Illness?

 

The body normally cools itself by sweating. During hot weather, especially with high humidity, sweating isn't enough. Body temperature can rise to dangerous levels if precautions are not taken. Heat illnesses range from heat rash and heat cramps to heat exhaustion and heat stroke. Heat stroke can result in death and requires immediate medical attention.

Who Is Affected?

Workers exposed to hot and humid conditions are at risk of heat illness, especially those doing heavy work tasks or using bulky protective clothing and equipment. Some workers might be at greater risk than others if they have not built up a tolerance to hot conditions.

How Can Heat Illness Be Prevented?

Remember these three words:

  • Water
  • Rest
  • Shade

Drinking water often, taking breaks, and limiting time in the heat can help prevent heat illness. Include these prevention steps in worksite training and plans.

Additional steps can also help prevent heat-related illness on the job whether employees are working outside or inside in a hot environment:

  • Gradually increase workloads and allow more frequent breaks during the first week or so of hot weather for all heat-exposed workers.
  • Pay special attention to workers who are new on the job or have been away from work for a week or more when the weather is hot. Make sure supervisors acclimate (or reacclimate) them properly to working in the heat.
  • Also make sure employees and supervisors know the symptoms of heat illness and look out for these signs in themselves and others during hot weather.
  • Plan for heat-related emergencies, and make sure everyone knows what to do. Acting quickly in heat illness emergencies can save lives.

No time to write safety meeting materials? You don't need to with the 50 prewritten safety meeting modules in BLR's Safety Meeting Repros program. All meetings are ready to use, right out of the box. Try it completely at our expense! PLUS get a free report!Get the details.


Using the Heat Index

Workers become overheated from two primary sources:

  • Environmental conditions in which they work (whether hot weather outside or hot conditions inside)
  • Internal heat generated by physical labor

To make sure workers keep safe as the heat rises, review this table, which matches temperatures, risk levels, and protective measures for high temperatures:

Heat Index

Risk Level

Protective Measures

Less than 91ºF Lower caution Basic heat safety and planning
91ºF to 103ºF Moderate Implement precautions and heighten awareness
103ºF to 115ºF High Additional precautions to protect workers
Greater than 115ºF Very high to extreme Triggers even more aggressive protective measures

For lower caution risk level, encourage workers to:

  • Drink plenty of water (make sure it is available).
  • Wear a hat and sunscreen.
  • Take rest breaks in an air conditioned or cool, shaded area.
  • Acclimate if new or returning to work and performing strenuous work.

Examine Safety Meeting Repros completely at our expense. Send no money. Take no risk. Get a FREE report. Get more info.


For moderate risk level, encourage workers to take all of the precautions above, plus:

  • Watch for signs of heat stress (be sure to review signs in a safety meeting and instruct supervisors to watch for symptoms).
  • Drink at least 4 cups of water every hour (make sure it is available).
  • Report heat-related symptoms immediately and seek appropriate first aid (explain who to call and review first aid for heat illness in safety meeting).
  • Call 911 if a worker loses consciousness or appears confused or uncoordinated.

For the high risk level, you should take these additional precautions to protect workers:

  • Increase rest periods.
  • Designate a knowledgeable person (well informed on heat-related illness) at the worksite to determine appropriate work/rest schedules.
  • Reduce the workload, and pace strenuous work tasks.
  • Make sure cool, fresh water is available, and remind workers to drink plenty of water every 15 to 20 minutes.

For very high and extreme risk levels:

  • Reschedule all non-essential outdoor work to days when the heat index is lower.
  • Move essential outdoor work to the coolest part of the work shift.
  • As much as possible allow for earlier start times, split shifts, or evening and night shifts.
  • Prioritize and plan essential work tasks carefully. Strenuous work tasks and those requiring the use of heavy or non-breathable clothing or impermeable chemical protective clothing should not be conducted when the heat index is at or above 115°F.
  • Stop work if essential control methods are inadequate or unavailable when the risk of heat illness is very high.

 


Obesity declining...Fat Chance!

Number of U.S. adults who are obese to increase by 9 percent by 2030, according to forecast.

LAURAN NEERGAARD, AP Medical Writer

Source: Timesleader.com

WASHINGTON — The obesity epidemic may be slowing, but don’t take in those pants yet.

Today, just over a third of U.S. adults are obese. By 2030, 42 percent will be, says a forecast released Monday.

That’s not nearly as many as experts had predicted before the once-rapid rises in obesity rates began leveling off. But the new forecast suggests even small continuing increases will add up.

“We still have a very serious problem,” said obesity specialist Dr. William Dietz of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Worse, the already obese are getting fatter. Severe obesity will double by 2030, when 11 percent of adults will be nearly 100 pounds overweight, or more, concluded the research led by Duke University.

That could be an ominous consequence of childhood obesity. Half of severely obese adults were obese as children, and they put on more pounds as they grew up, said CDC’s Dietz.

While being overweight increases anyone’s risk of diabetes, heart disease and a host of other ailments, the severely obese are most at risk — and the most expensive to treat. Already, conservative estimates suggest obesity-related problems account for at least 9 percent of the nation’s yearly health spending, or $150 billion a year.

Data presented Monday at a major CDC meeting paint something of a mixed picture of the obesity battle. There’s some progress: Clearly, the skyrocketing rises in obesity rates of the 1980s and ’90s have ended. But Americans aren’t getting thinner.

Over the past decade, obesity rates stayed about the same in women, while men experienced a small rise, said CDC’s Cynthia Ogden. That increase occurred mostly in higher-income men, for reasons researchers couldn’t explain.

About 17 percent of the nation’s children and teens were obese in 2009 and 2010, the latest available data. That’s about the same as at the beginning of the decade, although a closer look by Ogden shows continued small increases in boys, especially African-American boys.

Does that mean obesity has plateaued? Well, some larger CDC databases show continued upticks, said Duke University health economist Eric Finkelstein, who led the new CDC-funded forecast. His study used that information along with other factors that influence obesity rates — including food prices, prevalence of fast-food restaurants, unemployment — to come up with what he called “very reasonable estimates” for the next two decades.

Part of the reason for the continuing rise is that the population is growing and aging. People ages 45 to 64 are most likely to be obese, Finkelstein said.

Today, more than 78 million U.S. adults are obese, defined as having a body-mass index of 30 or more. BMI is a measure of weight for height. Someone who’s 5-feet-5 would be termed obese at 180 pounds, and severely obese with a BMI of 40 — 240 pounds.

The new forecast suggests 32 million more people could be obese in 2030 — adding $550 billion in health spending over that time span, Finkelstein said.

“If nothing is done, this is going to really hinder efforts to control health care costs,” added study co-author Justin Trogdon of RTI International.

 


Watch this free webcast series on employee communication!!

Watch the Effective Employee Communication Webcast – Just Released!

Studies show that 40% of all employees do not understand their benefits. This has shown to greatly impact the overall value perception of what your company is offering its employees, as well as the effective utilization of the company plan….

Watch this 13-minute compilation of tips and facts from industry professionals across the country that will help guide you to developing a more effective employee communication strategy for your organization!

Click Here To Watch!


Interest in health insurance exchanges grows

More say they would shop for coverage through a health insurance exchange

BY KATHRYN MAYER

More people looking to buy health insurance say they would shop for coverage through a health insurance exchange if they had the opportunity, according to a J.D. Power and Associates health plan study.

A majority of health plan members who purchase insurance on their own say they would likely use one of the state health insurance exchanges (55 percent), while 39 percent of those covered under an employer-sponsored program indicate they would shop for insurance through an exchange if it were available.

And more, the study finds there’s an increased level of interest in state-sponsored health insurance exchanges compared to last year. In 2012, 37 percent of health plan members say they wouldn’t likely use an exchange, compared with 50 percent in 2011 who expected to continue obtaining coverage at work.

The level of interest among those who obtain health insurance through work is an important implication for the future of employer-sponsored care, says Rick Millard, senior director of the health care practice at J.D. Power and Associates.

The study also finds substantial interest among health plan members in private health insurance exchanges, in which an employer might provide employees with vouchers for purchasing health insurance independently. Roughly 41 percent of employer-insured health plan members indicate they would use this approach if it were available.


Want to know what 2025 will look like?

BY KATHRYN MAYER

  1. Many needs, many models. This scenario is a natural extension of health care as many Americans know it. The scenario forecasts a shortage of primary care physicians, increased emphasis on disease prevention, growth in electronic medical recordkeeping, a shift from employee-based insurance to health insurance exchanges, and growing disparities in access to and quality of primary care based on income and where people live.
  2. Lost decade, lost health. This scenario forecasts a shortage of primary care physicians, declining income for practicing physicians and more uninsured patients, some of whom resort to black market care and unreliable online advice. Patients with good insurance have access to great care enhanced by advanced technology
  3. Primary care that works for all. This scenario assumes nearly universal health care coverage, with 85 percent of patients using integrated systems staffed by collaborative teams of health care providers, including physician assistants, nurse practitioners and health coaches who work closely with patients. Seeking to provide better care at lower cost while improving the health of the population they serve, primary care teams join with community partners to address factors that affect a community’s health, including employment, educational attainment, housing, transportation, and access to fruits and vegetables.
  4. Consumer is boss. Under this scenario, four of 10 patients opt for consumer-directed health plans, which include catastrophic insurance with high deductibles. For the most part, savvy consumers use advanced technologies, including noninvasive bio-monitors, as well as wellness and disease management apps, to stay healthy. Large vendors offer free avatar-based health coaching to consumers who purchase other integrated health products and services. Consumers shop for the best doctor and buy on the basis of high quality and low price.

Employers fail at measuring wellness program ROI

BY AMANDA MCGRORY

As health care costs continue to rise, employers are on the lookout for ways to reduce spending, and wellness programs are becoming an increasingly popular solution. While research has shown that wellness programs can reduce costs, many employers are failing to measure their return on investment to get an accurate picture of how these programs impact the bottom line, says LuAnn Heinen, vice president at the National Business Group on Health, a nonprofit dedicated to representing large employers’ perspectives on national health policy issues in Washington, D.C.

“It’s important for everyone to look at what they’re spending on wellness per employee and look at that as a percentage of what they’re spending on health care,” Heinen says. “Most employers keep their wellness program investments small – only 2 percent of less of claim costs. There’s a body of evidence in different employer settings and over a number of years that suggests there is a return on investment of $2-3 per every dollar invested. When looking at these figures, a lot of companies might find that they’re underinvesting in wellness and prevention.”

Despite the importance of measuring ROI on wellness programs, it can be a struggle for employers because of the various components, Heinen says. Employees are coming and going, coverage policies could change, new insurance carriers take over – there are so many revolving factors in an employer’s reality that getting a real read of wellness programs can be difficult.

“We have a messy real world,” Heinen says. “The bottom line is you can try to collect and study a lot of data to determine the return on investment, but for all kinds of reasons out of your control, you don’t end up with valid information.”

Although measuring ROI is challenging, that’s not a reason for employers to give up, Heinen says. Instead, Heinen recommends that an employer divides its employee population into two groups: participants and nonparticipants. Between those two groups, an employer can look at the difference in claims over time. However, there are some problems with that approach.

“It’s easier to participate in wellness if you’re healthy, so maybe that person would have cost less anyway,” Heinen says. “Just because you participated in wellness doesn’t mean it was because of the wellness program that those people cost less, but at least you know there’s an association between people in the wellness program who tend to be lower cost, and it can give you that confidence that the more people participating in wellness, the better for your trend.”

An employer can also measure ROI by matching a participating employee to a nonparticipating employee who both represent similar demographics, Heinen says. For instance, an employer can take a nonsmoking 35-year-old woman following the wellness program and compare her claims to another nonsmoking 35-year-old woman who is not participating. These similar demographics do a better job of painting the true claims picture.

“It wouldn’t be a good comparison if all the employees participating were 25 and all the employees not participating were 45,” Heinen says “You want to match based on key demographics that drive costs and then you have a better chance of seeing the differences in the cost profiles is the wellness program and not their age or their smoking status or something else.”

Employers should keep in mind that calculating the success or failures of a wellness program takes time, Heinen adds. Considering the revolving workplace and the time and effort it takes for implementation, employers should give their wellness programs two to three years before they relying on the data.

“It takes a while to get enough people to participate, and then it also takes time to get information on their experiences and make changes,” Heinen says. “You really need at least two years.”

 


Fitness in Middle Age Lowers Medical Costs Later: Study

By Ellin Holohan
HealthDay Reporter

THURSDAY, May 10 (HealthDay News) -- Subsidizing exercise and fitness-related lifestyles in middle age could significantly reduce the ballooning cost of health care in later years, a new study of more than 20,000 people suggests.

The study, slated for Thursday presentation at an American Heart Association meeting in Atlanta, found that fit middle-aged men and women had significantly lower medical expenses later in life compared to people who failed to stay in shape.

The more-fit study participants had 38 percent lower medical costs many years later, measured by Medicare and other insurance claims from 1999 through 2009.

"We wanted to determine if higher levels of physical fitness in middle age are associated with lower costs later in life," said study author Dr. Justin Bachmann. "We found that fitness confers dividends later in life even when other risk factors such as smoking, high blood pressure and obesity are controlled for."

The implications of the findings give "credence to efforts like Michelle Obama's 'Let's Move' campaign," he said. The First Lady has initiated a project aimed at reducing childhood obesity through exercise and proper nutrition.

Levels of fitness were determined by a treadmill test measuring metabolic equivalents (METs), Bachmann said. The higher the METs, the more fit a person is. People who exercise regularly perform better on the test because they have greater aerobic capacity, which translates into better cardiorespiratory health and lower costs later in life, he said.

The study was a collaboration between the University of Texas-Southwestern Medical Center and the Cooper Institute, both in Dallas.

Researchers screened participants for previous heart attacks, strokes and cancer. Of the 20,489 given a "healthy" designation, 16,186 were men and 4,303 were women, with an average age of 51. When Medicare costs and other insurance payments were compared, the average age was about 72, Bachmann said. The study participants were drawn from the Cooper Center Longitudinal Study, a repository of health-related data from close to 100,000 patients collected over the past four decades.

Many of the study participants were business executives who went to the center for physicals and represent "an unusually healthy cohort," reducing the effect of confounding factors, Bachmann said.

The analysis controlled for health risks, such as smoking, diabetes, high blood pressure, cholesterol levels and body-mass index (BMI). Body-mass index, used to measure the impact of obesity, is based on a combination of height and weight in adults.

Even in the presence of risk factors, better fitness in middle age predicted lower medical costs later.

The least-fit group at the study's onset had higher risk factors across the board. For example, 31 percent of the most out-of-shape men smoked, compared with 9 percent of the most-fit men. About 5 percent of the least fit men had diabetes, vs. less than 2 percent of men in the best condition. A similar pattern existed for women in the study.

Average annual claims for medical costs for the least-fit men, at $5,134, were about 36 percent higher than the average of $3,277 a year for the most-fit men. The average medical claims of $4,565 for the least-fit women were about 40 percent higher than the $2,755 average for the most fit.

Another expert called the study "quite compelling" and connected the results of the treadmill tests to regular exercise, promoting it as a path toward fitness.

"Exercise is the best medicine we have," said Dr. Suzanne Steinbaum, a preventive cardiologist at Lenox Hill Hospital in New York City. Noting that exercise has an impact on blood pressure, diabetes and even mood, she said "the positive effect of exercise on the body is powerful and it's empowering."

Exercise affects "so many chronic conditions leading to major health care costs," said Steinbaum, who also is the hospital's director of women and heart disease. "We should have financial support for people to go to gym facilities."

People who are more fit should "get some benefit" from insurers, Steinbaum said. Society should "give them the ability to become fit," and then "give people a reward when they demonstrate" fitness, she added.

Because the new study was presented at a medical meeting, the data and conclusions should be viewed as preliminary until published in a peer-reviewed journal.


Obesity declining? Fat chance

LAURAN NEERGAARD, AP Medical Writer

Source: Timesleader.com

WASHINGTON — The obesity epidemic may be slowing, but don’t take in those pants yet.

Today, just over a third of U.S. adults are obese. By 2030, 42 percent will be, says a forecast released Monday.

That’s not nearly as many as experts had predicted before the once-rapid rises in obesity rates began leveling off. But the new forecast suggests even small continuing increases will add up.

“We still have a very serious problem,” said obesity specialist Dr. William Dietz of the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

Worse, the already obese are getting fatter. Severe obesity will double by 2030, when 11 percent of adults will be nearly 100 pounds overweight, or more, concluded the research led by Duke University.

That could be an ominous consequence of childhood obesity. Half of severely obese adults were obese as children, and they put on more pounds as they grew up, said CDC’s Dietz.

While being overweight increases anyone’s risk of diabetes, heart disease and a host of other ailments, the severely obese are most at risk — and the most expensive to treat. Already, conservative estimates suggest obesity-related problems account for at least 9 percent of the nation’s yearly health spending, or $150 billion a year.

Data presented Monday at a major CDC meeting paint something of a mixed picture of the obesity battle. There’s some progress: Clearly, the skyrocketing rises in obesity rates of the 1980s and ’90s have ended. But Americans aren’t getting thinner.

Over the past decade, obesity rates stayed about the same in women, while men experienced a small rise, said CDC’s Cynthia Ogden. That increase occurred mostly in higher-income men, for reasons researchers couldn’t explain.

About 17 percent of the nation’s children and teens were obese in 2009 and 2010, the latest available data. That’s about the same as at the beginning of the decade, although a closer look by Ogden shows continued small increases in boys, especially African-American boys.

Does that mean obesity has plateaued? Well, some larger CDC databases show continued upticks, said Duke University health economist Eric Finkelstein, who led the new CDC-funded forecast. His study used that information along with other factors that influence obesity rates — including food prices, prevalence of fast-food restaurants, unemployment — to come up with what he called “very reasonable estimates” for the next two decades.

Part of the reason for the continuing rise is that the population is growing and aging. People ages 45 to 64 are most likely to be obese, Finkelstein said.

Today, more than 78 million U.S. adults are obese, defined as having a body-mass index of 30 or more. BMI is a measure of weight for height. Someone who’s 5-feet-5 would be termed obese at 180 pounds, and severely obese with a BMI of 40 — 240 pounds.

The new forecast suggests 32 million more people could be obese in 2030 — adding $550 billion in health spending over that time span, Finkelstein said.

“If nothing is done, this is going to really hinder efforts to control health care costs,” added study co-author Justin Trogdon of RTI International.


Younger buyers buying asset-based LTC

By Marli D. Riggs

The sale of asset-based long-term care insurance protection continues to grow significantly, reveals research by the American Association for Long-Term Care Insurance.

More than half (53%) of male LTC buyers were under age 65, up from 48% in a prior year’s study, while women buyers under age 65 also increased to 50%, up from 44%, according to data gathered from  insurers.

Meanwhile, premiums increased nearly 20% and the number of covered lives increased 13.5%.

"We expect the sale of asset-based or linked LTC products will continue to grow as they offer some highly attractive benefits to a category of buyers looking to protect their retirement savings," says Jesse Slome, AALTCI's director. "The growth of sales will only continue as more large players enter the marketplace.”

In 2011 the study finds that the initial single premium face amount of policies purchased was $100,000 or greater for 73% of new policies. Meanwhile, 96% of new life and LTC policies issued did not include a benefit increase option that bumped up available benefits to keep pace with inflationary growth of costs. Additionally the study of traditional individual LTC insurance policy sales finds that in 2011 some 96% included a growth option.

“At a time when long-term care is increasingly top of mind, these life insurance-based solutions avoid the ‘use it or lose it’ risk associated with traditional long term care insurance,” says Chris Coudret, vice president of OneAmerica. “In most cases, people make a single payment, effectively removing the risk of future premium increases.”


Wellness Perks and Relocations

FITNESS FIRST
Discounts for fitness centers tops employees' favorite wellness perks, according to the Principal Financial Well-Being Index. One quarter of respondents picked gym discounts as the most valuable perk, followed by on-site preventive screenings (22 percent), access to nutritionists (21 percent) and on-site fitness facilities (19 percent). However, gym discounts figure as the third most popular wellness perk offered by employers, preceded by online wellness information (19 percent) and educational tools (18 percent), and tied with printed wellness information (17 percent).

MOVE TO WORK
Many employers are willing to shell out cash to help new hires relocate, according to a new report by CareerBuilder. Among companies polled, 32 percent of employers said they'd be willing to pay to relocate new employees, while 44 percent of workers said they'd be willing to relocate for a job opportunity. Companies in the engineering and technology fields were the most likely to say they'd cover moving expenses for new hires, the report said.

CONTRACEPTION COMPROMISE
The Obama administration has proposed a compromise to quell the backlash about a new women's health services requirement from a number of religiously affiliated organizations. President Barack Obama announced that religiously affiliated universities and hospitals would not be forced to cover contraceptives for their workers. However, insurance carriers would be required to provide complete coverage for birth control at no charge for any woman at those institutions.  This rule, which still excludes women employed by churches, will take effect for employers on Aug. 1. Religiously affiliated groups will have an additional year before the rule affects them.

IN THE CARDS
Prepaid credit cards and gift cards are among the most popular incentives doled out by companies, according to a new survey. Young America Corp.'s survey of 355 executives found that 46 percent use prepaid cards for their rewards programs, compared with 33 percent who use cash and 47 percent that cut company checks.

CALIFORNIA QUESTIONS
A new law that expands the California Insurance Equality Act may have an impact outside the state. The previous law barred insurance carriers from issuing policies that treat spouses and "registered domestic partners" differently, according to a press release by Corporate Synergies. However, the new law clarifies that an insurance policy cannot discriminate against domestic partners (including same-sex partners) of California-based companies, even if the employees don't work in the state. The law also applies to employees who work in the state for companies headquartered elsewhere. Experts suggest employers review their policies but seek professional advice before making any moves regarding their plans.

INDIAN HEALTH SERVICES
The IRS recently issued guidance clarifying whether patients who use Indian Health Services (IHS) facilities can also contribute to a health savings account (HSA). The IRS states that individuals who are eligible for IHS services can make tax-free contributions to an HSA as long as they have not used IHS services in the previous three months.

RETIREE BENEFITS
About 22 percent of U.S. employers offered supplemental health coverage for retirees in 2011, down slightly from nearly 23 percent in 2006, according to a report by Compdata. On average, employees had to work for 12 years under their employer to be eligible and had to pay about 65 percent of the premium.

HAPPY GRADS
The average starting salary for new college graduates with bachelor's degrees was $41,701, up 2.3 percent compared with the class of 2010, according to a report by the National Association of Colleges and Employers. Graduates in the engineering and computer science fields fared the best in overall starting salaries, with computer science graduates enjoying the largest overall increase, the report said.

VEHICLE VALUES
The IRS has changed the vehicle value calculation for employers that own fleet vehicles. The maximum vehicle values for 2012 include:

  • Cars (for which cents-per-mile valuation rule is applied): $15,900 -- up from $15,300 in 2011.
  • Trucks or vans (for which cents-per-mile valuation rule is applied): $16,700 -- up from $16,200 in 2011.
  • Cars (for which fleet valuation rule is applied): $21,100 -- up from $20,300 in 2011.
  • Trucks or vans (for which fleet valuation rule is applied): $21,900 - up from $21,200 in 2011.