December 8th is Employee Health Day - Support employee flu vaccination
Every year influenza, or "flu," affects employers and businesses. Flu costs businesses approximately $10.4 billion* in direct costs for hospitalizations and outpatient visits for adults.
To help guide you, CDC has produced a Business and Employer's Toolkit http://cdc.gov/flu/pdf/business/Toolkit_Seasonal_Flu_For_Businesses_and_Employers.pdf (PDF, 2.72 MB) entitled "Make it Your Business to Fight the Flu."
CDC recommends a yearly flu vaccine as the first and most important step in protecting against flu viruses. This high-value, relatively low-cost prevention method creates savings in at least two ways:
1) reduced absenteeism and 2) reduced health care expenditures. Ultimately, a vaccinated workforce means healthier and more productive employees - now, that makes good business sense.
Tune-in to CDC's "Make it Your Business to Fight the Flu" podcast http://www2c.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=4165517#transcript (Time: 5:16, 4.8 MB) to learn more about the Toolkit and tips for organizing a flu vaccination clinic in your workplace and community. CDC encourages you to use the strategies and free resources in the Business and Employer's Toolkit to protect the health and productivity of your workforce this flu season and beyond.
This is a special day during National Influenza Vaccination Week (December 5-11) dedicated to the health and well-being of individuals in the workforce. Many adults spend the majority of their waking hours at work, and flu can spread rapidly through an office or workplace causing illness and lost productivity. People working in health care settings are among those at greatest risk of getting and spreading flu, often to vulnerable populations. Employee Health Day will remind employers that protecting employee health protects the bottom line.
To learn more, visit CDC's website http://www.cdc.gov/flu and http://www.flu.gov or call 1-800-CDC-INFO. For more information about NIVW and how you can get involved, visit the NIVW website.
*Molinari NA, Ortega-Sanchez IR, Messonnier ML, et al. The annual impact of seasonal influenza in the US: measuring disease burden and costs. Vaccine.2007; 25(27):5086-96