Lowell, AR-based truckload carrier J.B. Hunt Transportation Services recently garnered a top award for its wellness program aimed at improving the health of its truck drivers.
The Dallas, TX-based SouthWest Benefits Assn, a regional, non-profit focused on the employee benefits market, gave J.B. Hunt one of its first annual “Best of Class Benefits Solution” awards for its two-year old program to promote wellness, health coaching, and disease management for its drivers and their family members.
The carrier’s “Better Health For Life” program – developed in conjunction with disease management firm TrestleTree, financial consulting firm Watson Wyatt, and advertising agency Sells/Clark – seeks to improve the overall health of its truck drivers, a population that is prone to unhealthy living habits and suffering from much greater incidences of obesity, smoking, and high blood pressure.
“Once we studied our population and looked at our medical claims history, we designed the program to be like a three-legged stool,” said Eric Airola, director of benefits at J.B. Hunt. “The three legs are comprised of exercise, proper diet and weight management, and smoking cessation, and the seat of the stool is personal health coaching and disease management. Since its implementation two years ago, we’ve seen a positive, measurable impact on our population.”
