I highly object to companies whose wellness programs include punitive measures or differential rewards based on health status factors, including a person's cholesterol, blood pressure, weight or body mass index.  Body size or weight is not a proxy for health or wellness.   These programs are discriminatory practices.

A 2002 study, Evaluating a ‘non-diet’ wellness intervention for improvement of metabolic fitness, psychological well-being and eating and activity behaviors, whose objective was “to evaluate the effects of a 'health-centered' non-diet wellness program, and to compare this program to a traditional 'weight loss-centered' diet program;” concluded:

“Over a 1 y[ear] period, a diet approach results in weight loss for those who complete the intervention, while a non-diet approach does not. However, a non-diet approach can produce similar improvements in metabolic fitness, psychology and eating behavior, while at the same time effectively minimizing the attrition common in diet programs.” [Emphasis added]

There are studies that show: dieting results in one third to two thirds of dieters regaining more weight than they lost on their diets (aka yo-yo dieting) [Mann, 2007 and Pietilainen, 2012]; yo-yo dieting has a negative effect on the immune function [Hutchison, 2004]

A 2008 study from Yale’s Rudd Center found:
“Weight/height discrimination is prevalent in American society and is relatively close to reported rates of racial discrimination, particularly among women. Both institutional forms of weight/height discrimination (for example, in employment settings) and interpersonal mistreatment due to weight/height (for example, being called names) were common, and in some cases were even more prevalent than discrimination due to gender and race.” [Perceptions of weight discrimination: prevalence and comparison to race and gender discrimination in America, Puhl, et al, 2008]

The 2011 research report, Gender and Race Wage Gaps Attributable to Obesity [Dor, et al, 2011] found a 14% wage gap among obese Caucasian females. Additionally, it states that “It has been suggested that lower wages may be partially due to higher medical costs of obesity and the interaction of wages and employer-sponsored health insurance. However, even under this hypothesis, obese women face reduced wages exceeding obesity-related increases in medical expenditures, indicating that higher medical costs alone do not explain wage gaps.”

And now you are promoting a 20% additional cost for having a larger body?? That is discriminatory! There is an evidence-based compassionate alternative to conventional dieting: Health At Every Size®. Please consider this alternative prior to making a decision that may result in weight cycling.

For more information on Health At Every Size, you can find a general explanation on Wikipedia (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Health_at_Every_Size) or find in-depth research-based information in the book Health At Every Size - The Surprising Truth About Your Weight by Dr. Linda Bacon (http://www.lindabacon.org/HAESbook/).