Health plan members are not immune to the now-entrenched behavioral shifts driven by the COVID-19 pandemic. Convenience has become the viral app, with consumers assuming they will be able to carry out almost any transaction they wish, digitally, from the comfort of home. Plan members expect the same. They want streamlined self-service tools for doing business with plans and providers and digital assistance in achieving health and wellness goals. Payers that deliver on these expectations can build long-term relationships with members and capture greater lifetime value.
Those are just some of the conclusions we draw from our latest Voice of the Member survey.* Since we first surveyed plan members in 2016, they have steadily adopted payers’ digital tools. In fact, the number of members who reported downloading their plans’ mobile apps has nearly doubled since our 2018 results. Yet many members also indicate the digital features they want are not available or are of disappointing quality. We think that’s in part because many payers see digital tools and channels as window dressing, as opposed to a brand identity’s front end, inseparable from modernized operations and platforms.