Participation in employer-sponsored wellness programs before and after retirement.

OBJECTIVES To evaluate wellness program participation before and after retirement. METHODS This retrospective cohort design compares 3 groups of employees: 1998-1999 retirees (N=6065), 1994-1995 retirees (N=5862), and 21,176 employees who were still active as of 2002. Participation was compared over 2 time periods for high-intensity and low-intensity programs. RESULTS Significantly different participation rates were found among the 3 groups specific to program intensity. Participation before retirement is associated with higher participation after retirement regardless of program intensity (OR=3.8 for overall participation). CONCLUSIONS Wellness programs can attract retirees, especially if they participated before retirement and are offered a variety of programs.