Partnership for Workplace Mental Health
November 2009, E-Update
SAVE THE DATE
Disability Management Employer Coalition's (DMEC) 5th Annual Behavioral Risk Management in the Workplace Conference
April 21-23, 2010
Hyatt Regency, Minneapolis MN
As a subscriber of Partnership materials, you will receive a special discount when you register for this conference! Partnership subscribers pay only $249. Registration Opens December 15, 2009. Check the DMEC website at www.dmec.org for more information.
CALL FOR PRESENTATIONS
DMEC 15th Annual Conference on Integrated Disability & Absence Management "Taking Care of Business: Workforce Solutions in the New Economy"
August 1-4, 2010
Sheraton Hotel & Marina, San Diego
Call for Presentations
The 2010 DMEC Annual International Conference will soon be here, and we invite you to share your knowledge, successful strategies, proven programs, and new tools for educational content to help make it a success!
Through this Call for Presentations we are seeking the very best, most relevant and most timely information in order to deliver high-quality content that Employers need during this time of economic challenge and change.
To submit your session proposal, click here. The deadline for general submissions is Friday, November 13, 2009.
PARITY UPDATE
The Wellstone-Domenici Parity Act requires that any group health plan that covers more than fifty employees and offers mental health and/or substance use disorders coverage must provide that coverage with no greater financial requirements (i.e., co-pays, deductibles, annual or life-time dollar limits) or treatment limitations (i.e., number of visits) than the predominant requirements that it applies to substantially all medical/surgical benefits. The law takes effect for plan years beginning on or after October 3, 2009 - so for calendar year plans, the rules take effect January 1, 2010.
Federal guidance and regulations that clarify what the law intends are usually issued before a law like this goes into effect and, in this case, the statute required that regulations be issued by October 3, 2009. Unfortunately, the federal agencies responsible for issuing guidance (Labor in conjunction with Health and Human Services and Treasury) did not meet that deadline and have informed Congress that they expect to issue regulations by January of 2010. However, the law requires employers to comply even in the absence of regulatory guidance.
For information about the changes employers intend to make to comply with the law, see the Partnership's employer survey here.
To read about employers with experience in offering parity in their benefit designs, see the latest issue of Mental Health Works here.
As more information becomes available, we will update the Parity Section of our webpage.
PARTNERSHIP NEWS
Have you caught onto Research Works? Quickly becoming our most popular resource, Research Works reviews the research literature, suggests action steps, and provides employer case examples on specific workplace mental health topics. Our latest issue focuses on employee engagement. Did you know that only one in five workers is highly engaged in their work? Find out what that means for your bottom line, action steps and more by visiting the Partnership website and downloading your copy of Research Works.
To be added to the Research Works distribution list, please email mhw@psych.org and indicate "Research Works" in the subject line.
New Employers added to Employer Innovations database. Employer Innovations Online helps employers take action to address mental health at the workplace by providing case examples of successful corporate approaches. New to the database are stories from the Health Alliance and Clackamas County:
- In early 2006, a growing number of key Clackamas County (Oregon) employees were
choosing early retirement or reducing schedules to care for aging parents. Educational programs, materials, and support groups were added through
collaborative interagency services. From program evaluations, employees self-reported fewer absences, perceived greater control to handle challenging
situations, felt better able to make caregiving decisions.
- Increases in behavioral health related leaves of absence at the Health Alliance prompted changes in absence certification and disability management practices. A new approach involving enhanced internal communication and improved interactions with clients reduced lost work time, direct costs, and indirect costs.
WORKPLACE MENTAL HEALTH NEWS
Stress takes its toll on workers. According to the Disability Management Employer Coalition (DMEC), there's a business reason for paying attention to the stress that results from overwork. Last year, the DMEC convened a think tank to explore the causes and consequences of extreme productivity - a growing trend to push employees to work harder and faster. The coalition found that employees increasingly are being pushed to the limits, and the resulting stress reduces productivity and profitability and increases health care costs.
Click here to read this article in full, from the Sacramento Business Journal, and to find out how employers responded.
Also available for download, the DMEC 2008 Think Tank white paper, Hitting the Wall: Preventing the Fallout from Extreme Productivity Demands. The paper explores the causes and consequences of extreme productivity, while offering examples of strategies that help keep employees healthy, happy, and productive in an economically challenging environment.
Employers grapple with rise in workplace suicides. It is an issue of growing concern. There was a 28% increase in the number of suicides committed in the workplace last year-251-compared with the prior year, according to a census by the U.S. Department of Labor released earlier this month. Now more than ever, having a corporate culture that encourages employees to seek help is crucial.
To read the article in full, visit the Business Insurance Magazine website by clicking here.
Value-Based Design in Action. Recently published by the Center for Health Value Innovation, Value-Based Design in Action highlights the unique challenges that five public sector employers encountered and describes their innovative approaches to value-based benefit design. While efforts focused primarily on diabetes and hypertension, employers were so pleased with their results that many are narrowing in on depression as their next health care concern to focus on.
For more information, visit the Center for Health Value Innovation website.
Selecting and Strengthening Employee Assistance Programs: A Purchaser's Guide. The Employee Assistance Society of North America (EASNA) has published a comprehensive guide for employers and purchasers interested in selecting or evaluating an employee assistance provider. EASNA's Selecting and Strengthening Employee Assistance Programs: A Purchaser's Guide is now available as a free download from the EASNA website.
Click here to download a copy of the Guide.
EASNA Research Notes. In conjunction with the release of the larger Guide, (EASNA) has developed a new publication, EASNA Research Notes. These reports are brief-only three to six pages-and are based on content from the Guide. Each month EASNA will issue a new edition of the Notes, addressing topics of current interest in the behavioral healthcare field.
Each new issue of Research Notes will be posted on the EASNA website's Research page.
An Employers Guide to Workplace Substance Abuse. The National Business Group on Health has published a new report titled An Employer's Guide to Workplace Substance Abuse: Strategies and Treatment Recommendations. The Guide will help employers understand addiction, the prevalence of substance abuse among working adults, and the costs related to substance abuse. Reducing employee substance abuse can help employers improve productivity, reduce workplace injuries, and decrease health care costs.
To download a copy of the report, visit the National Business Group on Health webpage.
INFORMATION FOR EMPLOYEES AND THEIR FAMILIES
Talking to Kids about the Swine Flu (H1N1) Outbreak
The recent health scare is not easy for anyone to comprehend or accept. Understandably, many young children feel frightened and confused. As caring adults, we can help kids cope with stressful events and experiences. Although these may be difficult conversations, they are important. There is no "right" or "wrong" way to talk with children about such this and other stressful events. Visit HealthyMinds.org for more information.
Other resources for the workplace from the CDC:
- Swine (H1N1) Flu Key Facts: Provides key facts about H1N1.
- Swine Flu and You: Provides basic answers to questions about H1N1.
- Stopping Germs at Home, Work and School: Fact sheet on how to curb germs in the workplace, at home, and in schools.
Visit the Washington Post, here, to read more.
Seasonal Affective Disorder. During the fall and winter months, some people suffer from symptoms of depression that can appear gradually or come on all at once. These symptoms often dissipate as spring arrives and stay in remission through the summer months. For some people, this is a sign that they suffer from Seasonal Affective Disorder (SAD)
Visit Healthy Minds. Healthy Lives. for more information from the American Psychiatric Association on this important topic.