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Bannock County commissioners back employee wellness partnership with Healthy City USA
Summary
Commissioners voted to support employee participation in Healthy City USA events and use of the MoveSpring app, a voluntary wellness program intended to promote physical activity and reduce health claims.
Bannock County commissioners voted to support county employees' voluntary participation in an employee wellness calendar organized with Healthy City USA, including use of the MoveSpring wellness-tracking app and occasional lunch-and-learn events.
The move is intended to encourage healthier habits among county staff and to leverage an existing community program at no direct cost to the county, commissioners and staff said. Commissioner support was formalized by motion and an affirmative vote.
Matthew Phillips, Human Resources and Nurse Management Director for Bannock County, introduced the request and described the proposed partnership. “We—re just trying to improve the health, of Southeastern Idaho starting with Pocatello and Trevick,” Phillips said, describing Healthy City USA—s goal to build programs and educational opportunities across local organizations. Makayla Prochaska, wellness director for Healthy City USA, said the program partners with local organizations including Farm Bureau, Lookout Credit Union, ICCU and the Pocatello School District and uses the MoveSpring app to run step and activity challenges.
Phillips said the county would use its small wellness budget to pay for prizes as needed but would rely on Healthy City USA—s MoveSpring app so the county would not have to buy separate software. He told commissioners the program would be voluntary and noted a proposed kickoff challenge running Jan. 5 to Jan. 18 that would ask employees to do 15 minutes of activity per day.
Commissioners asked about technical issues and logistics. Phillips and Prochaska said MoveSpring has compatibility problems with some Samsung devices and that meeting hosting would run on Healthy City USA—s Zoom account rather than the county—s Microsoft Teams licenses; staff suggested using a conference room and a single Teams account for in-office participation when needed.
A commissioner moved that the board support participation in the employee wellness event calendar “as presented and discussed.” The board voted in favor; the motion passed.
The program is voluntary; no changes to employee work time or benefits were directed by the board in the motion. Staff were asked to place the item on the elected officials meeting agenda so elected leaders and supervisors could coordinate participation and timing.
