Cookeville officials are moving forward with a health initiative that City Manager James Mills said has already saved the lives of municipal employees.
Mills said the city partners with Cookeville Regional Medical Center each year to provide comprehensive wellness screenings for staff members. Mills said the program has successfully identified cases of cancer and high blood pressure among the workforce during previous screening cycles.
“This is very well received by our employees,” Mills said. “I think we usually have a couple hundred close to participate each year. We’ve actually we believe saved lives because of this. I know we’ve had some cancers and high blood pressure I know’s been detected through this.”
Mills said the services and fees for the upcoming year will remain identical to those provided in the previous contract. The Cookeville City Council will vote on the new fiscal year wellness screening program Thursday.
HR Manager Amy Garrett said the upcoming contract requires a correction regarding who is responsible for the costs of the screenings.
“The contract states that spouses and retirees that are covered under the employer’s medical plan may participate and will be responsible for paying half of all services listed, that is not correct,” Garrett said. “As of last year, spouses and retirees pay the full contract amount and it’s free to all employees. So we’ll get that revision done and updated.”
“It’s a really good program at a very reasonable price and we do appreciate Cookeville Regional Medical Center participating with us,” Mills said.
