Controlling health care costs in the military: the case for using financial incentives to improve beneficiary personal health indicators.

OBJECTIVE: To provide insight on the feasibility and utility of implementing a broad based incentive program for health within the Military Health System (MHS). METHOD: Published studies, articles, and information on the use of financial incentives in the military setting and to promote healthy behaviors were reviewed. RESULTS: Health care costs in the MHS have more than doubled over the past decade. The high prevalence of modifiable risk behaviors such as tobacco abuse, physical inactivity and obesity and their associated chronic diseases are accounting for a significant percentage of the growth. One evidence-based approach to address this issue would be the implementation of a broad based incentive program for health whereby all MHS beneficiaries would be eligible to receive some type of financial remuneration for meeting positive personal health metrics (e.g. not smoking or a normal body mass index). This approach if designed appropriately has the potential to have a high level of acceptance within the current beneficiary population since financial incentives are already used widely in the military to help meet overall manpower requirements. CONCLUSION: The use of a MHS wide financial incentives program to instill healthy behaviors in beneficiaries' may be an effective means to curb rising healthcare cost.