Many HR teams recognize the mental and physical toll that working from home has taken on employees. Stress, anxiety, lack of sleep and now a raft of physical ailments from poor ergonomics have led to exploding health care costs for some.
Those physical problems are expected to escalate this year, especially for remote workers, according to a new forecast from digital integrative care company Goodpath, which estimates that 2021 employer-paid musculoskeletal (MSK) treatment spending will be about 40 percent greater than in 2019. That represents an average of $5,687 spent per employee with MSK conditions this year, up from $4,272 spent in 2019.
