This article from the Washington Athletic Club highlights a serious issue that is affecting health insurance rates increases for the foreseeable future.

1. http://www.wac.net/stress.aspx
The Cost of Stress
It's too high and it's unnecessary
By Robert Simon Siegel, MS
Doesn't it seem time—after 25 years of research, books, tapes and workshops—that we finally have a cure for
stress? A performance- and health-enhancing treatment that works immediately for all types of stress throughout
the rest of your life? Is that asking too much? Read on, because there is a real remedy that dissolves stress in only
six seconds.
What could a genuine cure for stress accomplish?
Significant cost savings. A whopping 75%-90% of all doctor visits, medical and psychological, are now
recognized as stress related. With an average annual cost of $4,500 per person for health care, that is a potential
reduction of $2,125-$4,050 in health care costs per person once stress is "cured," particularly for self-administered
companies.
Cost containment. Current health care cost increases are ballooning annually at 12%-20% ($540-$900) per person,
with stress accounting for $405-$810 of that increase. A proper stress remedy should also contain such costs.
Lower absenteeism. Alleviating stress-related doctor visits would equally lower the percentage of absenteeism for
those visits. A single day of absenteeism costs a company at least $300 per employee at a $50,000 salary, assuming
no additional costs for project delays. If absenteeism averages 3-10 days a year per employee, then absenteeism
reductions of 2-9 days per employee could be accomplished with a stress cure. Without a cure, the problems repeat.
Improved performance. Each annoying "symptom" of stress detracts from performance and focus. Insomnia from
an overactive mind that won't allow sleep results in fatigue which in turn lowers concentration, innovation and
decision making at work. Tension headaches, irritation, frustration, upset stomachs, low blood sugar, colds and
negativity all damage mental focus and obstruct the positive flow of communications, teamwork and information
exchange necessary for normal business operations.
Less serious illness. We forget that many major debilitating illnesses like heart disease, diabetes, ulcers,
hypertension, colitis, cancers and a host of immune system deficiencies usually began as stress symptoms that
escalate because they are not successfully dissolved in a timely fashion.
That was before 9/11. Companies and individuals across America are already experiencing up to a four-fold
increase in absenteeism, doctor visits and prescription utilization since. Six months after 9/11, a protracted war on
terrorism, anthrax scares in the mail and sustained economic downturns have much of America's workforce now
living above their stress thresholds. A true cure for stress could prevent these huge cost increases and prevent
inevitable further damage simply by "resetting" peoples' internal milieu back to calm—quickly and repeatedly
throughout the day as needed. Gains in mental focus, energy and performance quality are the resulting side effects.