COLUMBUS - The Healthy Business Council of Ohio (HBCO) will recognize 73 Ohio employers for healthy worksite practices during the 14th annual Healthy Worksite awards presentation.

These awards recognize Ohio employers who demonstrate a commitment to employee wellness through comprehensive worksite health promotion and wellness programs. Applicants are scored on the extent their wellness programs facilitate and encourage employee health, enhance productivity and ensure a healthy work environment.

"Wellness programs are effective tools to engage employees in a more productive culture," David Cowden, Chair of HBCO said. "These programs most importantly help employees become healthier and happier, but also help drive down healthcare costs while driving up the bottom line."

All worksites, large and small, public and private, for profit and nonprofit, are eligible to apply for the Healthy Worksite Award. All applications were reviewed and evaluated using objective criteria. Three levels of achievement were awarded - Gold, Silver and Bronze. Other applicants, who meet basic criteria, received a Recognition award. Increasing the number of worksites receiving awards is an objective in Ohio's Plan to Prevent and Reduce Chronic Disease: 2014-2018, an objective being led by HOBC.

The ceremony will be held at 12:30 p.m. on January 25, 2018, at the Nationwide Hotel and Conference Center in Columbus, Ohio as part of the Health Action Council 2018 Columbus Symposium. The symposium features national experts on health reform, health care systems and health benefits.

Below are the recipients for the 2017 Healthy Ohio Healthy Worksite Award:

Small Business: <= 300 employees (21 awards)

Gold Award: Certified Angus Beef; City of Kettering; Lake Shore Cryotronics, Inc.; LifeCare Alliance; The Dupps Company; WBC Group LLC
Silver Award: Bricker & Eckler LLP; City of Montgomery; Columbus Zoo and Aquarium; Healthy New Albany; United Way of Central Ohio, Inc.
Bronze Award: Community Action Committee of Pike County; Corporate One Federal Credit Union; Custom Design Benefits LLC; Delaware General Health District; Findley Davies / BPS&M; HKM Direct Marketing; HORAN Associates; MarshBerry; Metals USA – Wooster; Principle Business Enterprises

Medium Business: 301-1,000 employees (16 awards)

Gold Award: American Showa, Inc.; Grange Insurance; NK Parts Industries, Inc.; Ohio Public Employees Retirement Sys-tem; Pickaway County Commissioners
Silver Award: City of Dublin; City of Westerville; Community Hospitals and Wellness Centers; Equity Trust Company; Mil-lerCoors Trenton Brewery; MS Consultants, Inc.; Summit County Developmental Disabilities Board; Wood County Hospital
Bronze Award: Automated Packaging Systems; Eliza Jennings Sr Care Network; Maumee City Schools

Large Business: 1,001+ employees (36 awards)

Gold Award: Akron Children's Hospital; Cincinnati Children's Hospital Medical Center; City of Cincinnati; City of Columbus; Dayton Children's Hospital; GE Aviation; Huntington National Bank; MetroHealth Medical Center; Montgom-ery County; Nationwide Children's Hospital; OhioHealth; Premier Health; Total Quality Logistics; TriHealth; Youngstown State University
Silver Award: Alliance Data; American Greetings; Battelle; Case Western Reserve University; Columbus City Schools Well-ness Initiative; Cooper Farms; Genesis HealthCare System; Kettering Health Network; Lake Health; Mercy Medical Center; Ohio Department of Health; ProMedica; Southern Ohio Medical Center; Union Hospital As-sociation; University of Cincinnati; Westfield Insurance
Bronze Award: Emerson; Fifth Third Bank; Lucas County Board of Commissioners; Marathon Petroleum Company; Mercy Health


For more information and to register for the Health Action Council 2018 Columbus Symposium, visit www.healthactioncouncil.org.

For more information on the Healthy Worksite Award program, visit http://www.healthy.ohio.gov/HOBC.