L.L. Bean, Inc. (1994)

Narrative Description of Program

The L. L. Bean Health and Fitness Program began in 1982 with the company's recognition of the importance of employee health to our business. Over the years it has grown into a comprehensive broad based program. Consistent with L. L. Bean's emphasis on Total Quality Management, the Health and Fitness Program continues to stress preventive health programs.

The overall L. L. Bean Employee Health program addresses a wide range of worksite wellness, occupational health, and safety needs. The specific goals are to:

• Increase overall health, fitness and related quality of life of employees (e.g. improve employee health habits to be comparable to the 75^th percentile of healthiest companies).
• Reduce injuries and illnesses.
• Reduce time lost from work.
• Reduce health care, workers compensation, disability, and absenteeism costs.

Numerous interventions (see Employee Health Mission Statement) are targeted by 15 health and safety professionals for 3,500 regular employees, their spouses, and retirees. In addition the program supports 3,500 seasonal employees who join the company each Fall.

Six professionals specifically address health risk and cost reduction through our Health and Fitness program (see Employee Health and Fitness Resource Guide). We developed this program over the years by identifying internal customer needs, reviewing the scientific literature, and benchmarking programs at Johnson and Johnson, Dupont, Coors, Aetna, Tenneco, Honeywell, and others.

Funds for the core program ($167,000 for 1993) come from the Human Resources Budget. This program is instrumental in achieving and maintaining a healthy and fit work force, a critical factor in achieving our business goals. To reach out to those employees with the greatest health risks, in 1990 we established an account within our self-insured health insurance account to fund our Health Risk Appraisal and follow up program. This account also provides financial credits to employees for participating in targeted health risk reduction programs ($88,000 for 1993).

To further integrate health promotion and group health insurance, we are linking our health improvement results and objectives into our managed care offerings (see RFP for Managed Care).

We also specifically target health improvement for our employees with workers compensation injuries/illnesses (see L. L. Bean Health Services).

Employee Health Mission Statement

Purpose: To work with area management and employees to achieve and maintain a healthy and safe workplace, and promote the health, safety, and fitness of employees.

Objectives

• Reduce injuries and illnesses
• Reduce time lost from work due to injuries/illnesses
• Increase overall health, fitness and related quality of life of employees
• Reduce workers compensation and health care costs

"Right Things" to Achieve Objectives

Prevent Occupational Injuries/Illness By:

• Ergonomic Design of Work Stations and Work Processes
• Health and Safety Education and Training
• Worksite Stretch Programs
• Safety/Industrial Hygiene Programs
• Post Offer Health Inquiries

Manage Occupational Injuries/Illnesses By:

• Case Management of Disabled Employees
• Onsite Physical Therapy
• Transitional Work/Permanent Reassignment for Disabled Employees
• Claims Handling

Prevent and Manage Those Non-Work Related Injuries/Illnesses with Greatest Negative Impact on Employees and L.L. Bean Through:

• Health Risk Appraisals
• Health Classes and Programs
• Health Education and Counseling
• Departmental Stress Management Consulting
• Benefit Bonus Credits

Provide Health and Fitness Programs for General Health Improvement:

• Health and Activity Classes
• General Fitness Assessments
• Five Regional Fitness Centers

Customer-Supplier Alignments with Key Areas

Compliance with Governmental Regulations

Company Name	Location	Approximate Off-Peak Employment
General Offices, Retail Store, Distribution Center, Etc.	Freeport, ME	1,891
Warehouse, Administration, etc.	Portland, ME	966
Manufacturing	Brunswick, ME	307
Telephone Center	Lewiston, ME	295
Factory Store	North Conway, NH	15
Factory Store	Nashua, NH	25
Factory Store	Ellsworth, ME	8
TOTAL		3,507*

*A Concord, NH Factory Store will open in May with 25 employees eligible for benefits

L.L. Bean Health Philosophy

L.L. Bean is committed to improving and maintaining the health of our employees and their families. Our goal is to be among the healthiest of U.S. companies. We want our employees to be healthy because we believe that healthy people lead fuller lives, and as employees, are more productive contributors to the success of our company.

In partnership with our employees, we focus our efforts on preventing illness and disability and improving the overall health of Bean people and their families. We consistently encourage our employees to take personal responsibility for their health. We support them by offering high quality, cost-effective and needs based health, safety, fitness, and benefits programs which reflect our health philosophy. Working together we believe we can achieve our goals.

L.L. Bean Commitment to Employee Health

As a Total Quality Management organization, L.L. Bean is very focused on the long term health and welfare of its employees and their families. Management is engaged in the process of educating employees about healthy lifestyles. To this end, L.L. Bean seeks assistance and input from a quality managed care partner on methods to promote positive health outcomes for employees and their families. In May, 1993 management surveyed employees on various issues about current health practices. The 81% response (3,108 surveys returned out of 3,667 distributed) demonstrates L.L. Bean's employees' interest in health issues. A sampling of survey results follows:

• 86% never had high blood pressure;
• 60% had cholesterol 200mg/dl or below;
• 63% currently do aerobic exercise;
• 80% have a healthcare professional;
• 54% do a monthly breast exam (females only)
• 28% use Fitness Centers;
• 26% participate in Activity Classes
• 27% participate in Health Education Classes
• 40% participated in Health Risk Appraisal
• 56% participate in worksite Stretch breaks
• 52% participate in Blood Pressure/Cholesterol Screening

L.L. Bean's Objectives in Soliciting Proposals

• To take advantage of opportunities to control long term cost and utilization while enhancing the quality of health care delivered to L.L. Bean employees.
• To provide employees with a health plan that offers employees and their families enhanced health opportunities with a preventive care focus.
• To identify and contract with a managed health care provider whose commitment to quality and service excellence mirrors that of L.L. Bean, Inc.
• This provider will be capable of meeting the current needs of l_. L. Bean, and meet future needs as they arise; and will commit to development of a long term relationship with L.L. Bean.
• To obtain the same superior quality customer service for LOLJ Bean employees as L.L. Bean delivers to its own customers.
• To select the managed health care provider whose rating methodologies, administrative fees and health care products best meet L.L. Bean's financial, service and quality requirements.

 

General Information
Program Name	L.L. Bean Employee Health Program
Company Name and Address	L.L. Bean, Inc.Casco St.Freeport, ME 04033
Contact Person	Ted Rooney, Employee Health ManagerSusan Tuftds, Assistant Manager Employee Health & Fitness(207) 865-4761
Program Information
Program Category	Worksite
Year begun	1982
Total number of individual participants	2,670
Number of currently actively enrolled	2,670
Number of companies/groups involved	1
Access to Program	Restricted to developing organizations
Cost per participant per year	$96
Data available to external reviewers or investigators	Yes
Program targeted at Healthy People 2000 goals	Yes
Program goals (in priority order)	(1) Risk factor reduction(2) Health outcome improvement(3) Cost-effectiveness(4) Cost-benefit

Narrative Description of Evaluation Results

We evaluate our programs using a variety of measures, including internal analyses, employee feedback, and external benchmarking. We focus on what works in benchmark companies and on cost-effectively implementing those programs at L. L. Bean.

We meet the criteria for comprehensive Tier III programs identified by The Health Project, having over twice the number of points necessary to qualify. Our most recent company-wide health survey was conducted in 1993 (see Health Beat newsletter). We identified our progress in relation to previous internal surveys, state and national norms, and Healthy People 2,000 goals (see L.L. Bean Health Survey Comparison Chart). In 1994 we increased our efforts in those areas needing greatest improvement: exercise and nutrition.

Employees rate our programs very favorably. For example, the average rating of participants in our Health Risk Appraisal program in 1993 was 4.8 on a 5 point scale. Even though employees are spread over numerous sites, 75% of employees rate our programs as accessible.

We received high marks in a 1992 site visit in the Johnson and Johnson benchmark project. We have subsequently addressed all the improvement opportunities identified (see Johnson and Johnson Benchmark report and newsletter).

During the past six years the increase in the cost of medical benefits for L. L. Bean has increased less than the Northeast or national per employee averages. The differences have been dramatic during the past three years. In 1991, the cost per L. L. Bean employee was $2,068 compared to the Northeast per employee average of $3,483. This represents a cost savings of 40.6%, or $1,415 per employee. In 1992, medical expenses increased only $37 per employee. Costs were $1,532 below the Northeast average which translates to a 42.1% savings. In 1993, the per employee average was $2,123 compared with the Northeast average of $4,000. This was an increase of only $18 which was a savings of $1,877 or 46.9% per employee (see L. L. Bean Per Capita Medical Claims chart).

There are a number of factors potentially affecting these cost differences. We have designed and implemented programs analogous to proven and documented programs of other leading companies. Our health promotion programs are integrated with effective benefit design and management and we feel are instrumental in our results. To obtain further results, we are currently tying our health and fitness programs even more directly into our new managed care offering (see L. L. Bean RFP).

Lastly, we have arranged with Maine Medical Center and Dartmouth Medical School to survey all our regular employees confidentially with the SF-36 health outcomes instrument, a health habits survey, and a job satisfaction survey. This will provide a cross-sectional and longitudinal framework for ongoing program evaluation and improvement.

These types of evaluations give us a cost-effective method for measuring our program impact while allowing us to allocate the bulk of our funds to programming.

• L.L. Bean Inc. - Employee Health Program2

The following assessment of program strengths and weaknesses has been abstracted from reviews by the Task Force on Program Selection of The Health Project. Where weaknesses are postulated, it must be taken into account that the review Task Force is very critical, that no programs are perfect, that the Award Winning programs have been selected from over 300 candidate programs and represent the very best, that the materials reviewed may have been incomplete, that suggested deficiencies may have resulted from incomplete understanding of the program by the reviewers or that any problems may have been corrected since the time of review.

The L.L. Bean Health and Fitness Programs are evaluated through internal analyses, employee feedback and external bench marking with costs almost half the regional average. Bonus credits reward employees and families for completing programs in smoking, nutrition, pre-natal care, breast self examination, health risk appraisal, cholesterol and blood pressure.

Generously funded. Linked with the Maine Medical Center and Dartmouth program materials. Costs are rising less than the average of the Northeastern states. There are dramatic claims changes. The program is comprehensive. The SF-36 is used to measure outcomes. There are high rates of participation and claims costs are tracked. There is a long-term corporate commitment and a variety of program offerings. Benchmarks have been developed to evaluate results. There is documented change in a few risk factors. Employees are very satisfied with the program. There are good savings and workers compensation data. External and positive review by Johnson and Johnson was conducted in 1992.

Evaluation data is sometimes sketchy. Medical claims for the company is quite favorable but it is not possible to pinpoint factors which contribute to positive results and estimated cost-savings. The evaluation plan was not felt sufficiently rigorous to absolutely document cost-savings by some reviewers. Good participation rates were found in some programs but not in others.