CVS Makes Health Insurance Conditional

CVS of Oklahoma City has employee strength of over 200,000, is under an inquiry, as they want to change the way in which employees will be eligible for health insurance.

According to the company if workers want health insurance they have to undergo health checks and provide their weight, body fat and glucose levels, failing which they will have to pay $600 a year from their own pockets.

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“That’s a joke, that doesn’t make sense at all,” Walker Long, Jr. said.

“I don’t really think its fair,” Cindy Mossman said. “I was a single mother for a long time and there are lots of people who can’t afford to pay a fine or go to the doctor.”

Mossman manages an interior design business. She said she couldn’t imagine asking employees to show a health check.

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“Unless we were basically forced to by law or by the insurance company,” Mossman said

“They may want a healthier workforce but they’re going about it in a destructive way that really offends people and violates their privacy,” Dr. Deborah Peel said.

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CVS said that it was only a way for employees to stay healthy and that the company would not see the information as it was only for the employees benefit.

The local critics feel it would harm the company in the long run.

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“If my job were to do something like that, it would be really difficult for me to stay,” Long said.

“It might be hard for them to find people to work for them,” Mossman said.

The workers have a deadline of May 2014 for medical checkups.

The statement sent by CVS on Health Insurance changes:

“We want to help our employees to be as healthy as they can be which is why we decided to implement this plan. In fact, we have been working for a number of years on ways they can improve their health through preventive measures. Health care programs that incent employees to be healthier are not new. Many companies around the country already have plans similar to the one we are implementing. In fact, 79 percent of large employers* have health assessments incorporated into their programs. To encourage a higher level of participation in our wellness review, we reviewed best practices and determined that an additional cost for those who do not complete the review was the most effective way to incent our colleagues to improve their health care and manage health costs.

CVS Caremark is committed to providing medical coverage and health care programs for our colleagues and privacy is rigorously protected, consistent with HIPAA regulations. All personal health data from these screenings are collected and reviewed by a third party administrator that supports the CVS Caremark Wellness Program and this data is not shared with CVS Caremark – rather it is designed to help employees make the best decisions about their own health care.”

References:

Hannah Punitha (IRDA Licence Number: 2710062)

Courtney Francisco, March 2013

Source-Medindia