What dollar amount of incentive does it take for an individual to take a desired health behavior? We all have our price, so to speak. A recent study by Aon Hewitt, entitled the Consumer Health Mindset, sheds some light not only on the amount it takes, but also what percentage of people would never take the behaviors regardless of the amount.
According to the 2014 Aon Hewitt Consumer Mindset Survey, consumers indicated the dollar value of reward it would get them to take certain actions:
$1-50 | $51 – 150 | $151-300 | $301 | |
| Have my blood drawn (during work hours) and tested for cholesterol, glucose and other important health measures | 24% | 13% | 9% | 8% |
| Participate in a medically sponsored program to help me manage a medical condition I have | 21% | 13% | 8% | 10% |
| Participate in fitness program two or three days/week or one hour during non-work hours | 20% | 16% | 10% | 12% |
| Talk to a health coach (during work hours) to create a plan for lifestyle changes to maintain or improve my health and have periodic check-in | 24% | 16% | 8% | 9% |
| Complete a confidential 15- to 20-minute online questionnaire (during work hours) that asks about my health and lifestyle | 35% | 14% | 7% | 8% |
| Participate in a healthy eating or weight management program | 21% | 17% | 11% | 12% |
| Participate in a company competition for weight loss, physical activity or other health-related outcome or activity | 22% | 17% | 12% | 14% |
Consumers also indicated which behaviors they would do just for the benefit of doing it and things they would never do regardless of reward value:
Would Do Just for Benefit of Doing It | Would Never Do Regardless of Value | |
| Have my blood drawn (during work hours) and tested for cholesterol, glucose and other important health measures | 38% | 9% |
| Participate in a medically sponsored program to help me manage a medical condition I have | 36% | 11% |
| Participate in fitness program two or three days/week or one hour during non-work hour | 32% | 10% |
| Talk to a health coach (during work hours) to create a plan for lifestyle changes to maintain or improve my health and have periodic check-in | 30% | 13% |
| Complete a confidential 15- to 20-minute online questionnaire (during work hours) that asks about my health and lifestyle | 28% | 9% |
| Participate in a healthy eating or weight management program | 24% | 15% |
| Participate in a company competition for weight loss, physical activity or other health-related outcome or activity | 20% | 15% |
In the end, there are many solutions being developed every day to help patients and providers. But in the end, doesn’t it all come down to patient and provider behavior. If we build these solutions and they are not used, used as intended or used enough, won’t they fail? If we built it, we must make them come. The ability to determine the level of effort of the action and the associated dollar value of incentive it takes to drive that action is likely to become a science unto itself.
