Another is for companies to promote wellness programs. Some forward-looking companies are even building incentives into their employee assistance programs to encourage employee participation. Ceridian’s LifeWorks program, for example, is one that offers incentives to employees for developing healthy habits. By promoting employee health, employers stand to win big time in enhanced productivity, lower absenteeism, and reduced insurance premiums. That’s why some companies are also building on-site gyms, and offering health center memberships to their employees. It pays off—fit people tend to be much more productive and tend to be much more successful. And it’s good for all of us.
Isn’t it possible that there could be a universal single-payer system in the U.S.?
We should set aside phrases that tend to evoke more emotion than thought, like ‘single payer.’ I would look at the model created here in Minnesota, which is Minnesota Care. We focused strictly on a problem area, which is the pool of unemployed Minnesotans, who tended to be single mothers, students who just got out of college, and the most affected group, which was children. We showed that things can be done without massive government bureaucracy. Government works best in an oversight function, worst when it is in an operational mode.
On Finding Minnesota’s Galvanizing Force The hard question that we have to ask ourselves is, Why this success [Minnesota’s success in decades past]? Because it’s the tendency whenever you have success to live off the past and forget about the responsibility of today and tomorrow. Part of it, I would contend, comes from the Citizens League and its enormous ability to bring together CEOs, labor leaders, community leaders, academic leaders—people from all sectors to work together toward common goals. “The Citizens League does not enjoy the same strength that it had 20 years ago, when it literally defined Minnesota’s agenda. So there really is nothing that brings us together on a continuing basis and lays out, if you will, a vision for this state . . . . The galvanizing force that has the power, has the responsibility, and has the opportunity to bring us together is, frankly, the University of Minnesota. In terms of its resources, in terms of its faculty, in terms of its diversity, there is no institution that can better grapple with the concerns that we have. Think of the resources they can bring to bear on global warming. Think of the resources they can bring to bear on the whole issue of health care and the costs of health care and the technology of health care. Think of the resources they have in terms of allowing us to create the kind of business climate that is growth oriented, particularly for small companies. Think of the resources they have in terms of being able to command the respect of top-level management of every single company. That, maybe, is the best place for our center to be. |
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