Maybe the way to make health insurance plans for small groups more profitable is to spend a lot more on service.
Make believe you are viewing the American health care system from outer space.
You'd see employees paying for coverage that neither they nor their employers understand. You'd see members who have been convinced to stay "in network"–but who don't trust their carriers. You'd see carriers who are convinced that their members are out to get all kinds of unnecessary care, procedures, medications and treatments.
Meanwhile, there is tremendous churn: 60% of small businesses shop for new coverage every year.
Why not try to improve performance by reducing the churn?
Here are three ideas for how to achieve that goal.
1. Keep it simple.
Insurers always are reminding plan members that "in-network rates" mean you have to stay in the network or pay more out of pocket and that generic-only drug plans do not cover brand-name drugs.
But when members actually need care, all many of them understand is, "I'm paying, and you're not covering."