Business owner Matthew Condon lopped $27,000 off the cost of providing health benefits for his 70 employees by adding one feature &mdash; a wellness program &mdash; to the firm&rsquo;s traditional benefits plan.</p><p>&ldquo;We&rsquo;ve got the numbers to show insurance companies how we are mitigating (potential) losses before they occur, so we can demand the companies recognize that,&rdquo; said Condon, who put the cost of the wellness program at less than $3,000.</p><p>What makes the accomplishment more remarkable is the nature of Condon&rsquo;s business. He&rsquo;s chief executive of Athletic & Rehabilitation Center, an area chain of physical therapy and rehabilitation services providers based in Overland Park. Many of the employees covered by the plan are physical therapists, who may be more fit and healthier than your run-of-the-mill desk jockey. </p><p>So if Condon&rsquo;s company can pull that much savings out of adding a health plan feature aimed at preventing illnesses, and reducing future claims for traditional treatment, other businesses where employees might not hit the treadmill as regularly should be able to save bundles too. </p><p>Or so believe growing numbers employers who are looking down the road and considering these and other health incentives to offer workers respite from higher out-of-pocket costs and trimmed benefits.</p><p>Still, research released last week by insurance giant MetLife says that while 94 percent of U.S. employers agree wellness plans would help cut costs, only 33 percent actually offer wellness programs. </p><p>That is up significantly, however, from the roughly one-fourth of employers who offered such plans four years ago, said Ron Leopold, a MetLife vice president.</p><p>&ldquo;Employers are increasingly recognizing the value to all stakeholders of a healthy work force and viewing wellness programs as an investment,&rdquo; Leopold said.</p><p>In other words, change is coming &mdash; even as the government&rsquo;s attempts at health care reform, an uncertain economy and ever-rising medical costs hold sway.</p><p>For most employers &mdash; that great majority who hold open enrollments around November to make changes effective the following Jan. 1 &mdash; this year&rsquo;s enrollment plans for 2010 are locked. They already have held the line as much as possible, or shifted costs, promoted wellness and made other changes they&rsquo;ve felt necessary, said Mitch Santiago, senior consultant for Watson Wyatt, a global benefits consultant based near Washington, D.C. </p><p>Open enrollments for 2011 and 2012 may or may not reflect big changes, depending on how much of a break the changing economic and political climates allow, he said. </p><p><strong><span class="subhead">New ideas</span></strong></p><p>Meanwhile, insurers and medical services are stepping up efforts to promote wellness, prevention and condition management options.</p><p>UnitedHealthcare, a benefits management arm of UnitedHealth Group, the nation&rsquo;s second-largest health insurer, this year launched a diabetes health plan. It&rsquo;s billed as the first in the nation to control employers&rsquo; health care costs by rewarding diabetic and pre-diabetic workers who follow specified steps &mdash; such as regular blood sugar checks, routine exams and preventive screenings &mdash; to control their condition. </p><p>Benefits include some free diabetes supplies and diabetes-related prescriptions and lower copayments for doctors&rsquo; visits, which UnitedHealth said, provides a savings of as much as $500 a year.</p><p>The plan is a tremendous money saver for employers and insurers too, said Tony Sun, a UnitedHealthcare executive in Overland Park. Paying medical costs for a diabetic person in a traditional plan costs an average $22,000 a year, or 13 times more than a co-worker without that chronic condition.