U.S. Sen. Amy Klobuchar and U.S. Rep. Erik Paulsen today announced they are creating a Congressional Wellness Caucus to promote health in the workplace.

Yes, she's a Democrat and he's a 3rd District Republican. But everyone agrees that wellness shouldn't be considered a partisan issue. Health care reform, though, clearly is a different matter.

Klobuchar and Paulsen are also co-chairs in their bodies of the House Med-Tech caucus.

Tom Mason, head of the Alliance for a Healthier Minnesota — a public-private partnership that includes Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, Medica, Medtronic, and the Minnesota Department of Health — gets credit for coming up with the health caucus idea, says MPR.

 "I was looking for a caucus, because there are a lot of caucuses in Congress, and I didn't find one," Mason told MPR. "So we went out and we talked to Senator Klobuchar and Congressman Paulsen and said you know this could be a valuable non-partisan activity and they both were enthusiastically supportive."

More businesses should invest in preventative wellness initiatives since health care costs have a big impact on their bottom lines, Mason said, and the new caucus can promote those options.