Hazelden calls upon American businesses to dispel fears and empower workers to get help when they need it

Minneapolis, MN - Although Americans expect that their employer's health insurance will cover alcohol or drug addiction treatment, more than one in five insured employees believe that if they sought coverage for that treatment, they would face negative consequences at work. Fears range from being fired outright to losing a license or failing to get a promotion, according to the results of the September 2002 "Workplace Recovery Benefits Survey" released today by Minnesota-based Hazelden Foundation.

Hazelden's new survey also reveals that more than half of this country's 74 million workers with job-sponsored health insurance would prefer to ask a boss about their company's insurance coverage for treatment of a disease like diabetes, rather than face retribution or punishment for merely asking what kind of coverage their company has for treatment of problems with alcohol or other drugs.

Whether it's from embarrassment, fear of job loss or other work-related disapproval, more than one in six workers say they'd be reluctant to seek their employer's insurance coverage for drug treatment for themselves or a family member. However, Hazelden's survey reveals that a majority of respondents (77 percent) still believe that employer-paid health insurance should be required to cover treatment for problems with alcohol or other drugs.

"Alcoholism and other drug addictions are chronic, potentially fatal diseases if not treated," states William Moyers, Vice President of External Affairs for Hazelden. "Millions of employees desperately need substance abuse services but don't seek them because they're afraid of negative on-the-job consequences. It's critical for managers to tell workers, `You have nothing to fear. We'd rather have you use our health insurance coverage for substance abuse services than jeopardize job performance or safety.'"

Moyers adds that strictly enforced federal laws protect the identity of employees who access insurance benefits for any medical service, including substance abuse services. "Employers must communicate - and demonstrate - that workers won't be discriminated against if they seek alcohol or drug addiction treatment," he stresses.

Three Steps to Empower Employees
"Addiction is a disease of denial and shame," Moyers says. "Therefore, employers must take steps to continually empower employees to seek help before problems arise." To assist, Hazelden announces three steps every employer should take to remove workers' apprehension about accessing health insurance for alcohol or drug treatment:

• During every new employee orientation, managers should clearly describe available insurance benefits for substance abuse services, and emphasize that employees' rights to confidentiality are strictly enforced.
• Managers should choose an appropriate time to annually reiterate to employees the company's substance abuse insurance benefits. At that time, clearly make known the company's commitment to confidentiality and interest in employees' well being. Encourage workers to take advantage of available insurance coverage if they need help for alcoholism or other drug dependency. "A designated date like National Substance Abuse Recovery Month (each September) would be a good time to focus on the company's support in paying for substance abuse services," Moyers says.
• Charge human resource managers and employee assistance program staff to educate employees how to use the company's insurance system for substance abuse services. For example, workers should know that pre-approval for in-patient services may be required to receive a policy's maximum coverage benefit. "Knowledge is power," Moyers says. "The more employees know about their health insurance and how they'll get the most benefit from it, the more likely they are to be comfortable accessing the system."

• Ten times more likely to miss work
• Three and-a-half times more likely to be involved in on-the-job accidents
• Five times more likely to file a worker's compensation claim
• Thirty-three percent less productive

Other insights drawn from Hazelden's telephone survey of more than 1,000 workers who have health insurance through their employer:

The older employees are, the less reluctant they are to seek coverage for the cost of treating a drug or alcohol problem (24 percent of those between the ages of 18-34 would be reluctant, whereas only 12 percent of those 55 and older say the same). These findings are significant, Moyers says, when you consider that 18-34 year-olds have the highest incidence of drug and alcohol use.

More than one-third of workers reported that they personally know of a coworker who has a problem with alcohol or other drugs. Most (82 percent) believe that their fellow employees would benefit from employer-sponsored health insurance coverage for drug treatment.

For information on Hazelden resources, such as pamphlets, videos and workbooks on how employers and managers can address substance use/abuse issues in the workplace, visit www.hazelden.org/bookplace or call Hazelden at 1-888-355-6895.

About the survey
The telephone survey, conducted in September, 2002 for Hazelden by Ipsos Reid, polled a nationally representative sample of 1,101 households that reported having health insurance through an employer. The margin of error is +/- 3.1 percent.

About Hazelden
The nonprofit Hazelden Foundation, founded in 1949, pioneered the model of care for alcoholism, drug addiction and related diseases that is now the most widely used in the world. Today, with more than 50 years of experience and an unparalleled breadth of services, Hazelden is an international provider of treatment, recovery, research and training, offering programs, services and publications for individuals, families and communities affected by chemical dependency.

Date of Release: October 15, 2002