Case Study: City of San Antonio achieves sustained virtual wellness engagement and validates incentive-driven HRA & biometric participation with Personify Health

The Impact of Removing Wellness Program Incentives During COVID-19

The City of San Antonio, a 12,000‑employee municipality, built a comprehensive Virgin Pulse wellness program to address high local rates of diabetes, hypertension and obesity. During COVID‑19 the city cut its generous wellness incentives (up to $500 per eligible employee) and shifted to remote work, which coincided with a sharp decline in participation in predictive activities like the annual health risk assessment (HRA) and biometric screenings.

A three‑person wellness team pivoted to virtual engagement—virtual 5K, scaled webinars (from ~25 to 300–400 attendees), sleep and nutrition features, and mental‑health check‑ins—and maintained high satisfaction and reduced attrition (down 13%). However, data confirmed incentives matter: HRA completion fell from 49% to 14% and biometric tracking from 45% to 15%, overall monthly engagement dropped from 54% to 18%, and one month after incentives were restored engagement rebounded to 47%.

City of San Antonio

David Whitt

Employer Wellness Manager