Health Applications
To collect or not to collect?
Many brokers think collecting health applications is a necessary evil.
Health applications are an asset and required to be a true consultant.
Health applications are required to be a true consultant
As with any professional consultant or advisor, there is a lot of rigor when it comes to assessing a client’s current situation and specific needs. Once the consultant thoroughly understands the client’s current situation and what they care about, then and only then can the consultant provide advice on what actions to take now and which actions to be in to prepare and take care of future concerns.
For example…
A financial advisor will not provide advice after asking only for a census of the family and a copy of a current pay stub.
A doctor won’t schedule surgery and prescribe drugs without first administering exams, tests, labs, etc.
Being a group health insurance broker or consultant is no different.
In order to provide sound advice and propose health care plans, brokers need to know the specific health of the group. Providing proposals based on general information is not professional and true consulting.
Collecting health applications provides the necessary health data to assess a group’s health situation and needs, and then administer consultation based on that data.
Health applications are an asset
Collecting health applications on eHealthApp gives the broker valuable health data on every employee, spouse and dependent that is interested in enrolling in the group benefit plan.
Having the health data along with eHealthApp’s health census analytics reports, the broker can quickly analyze, strategically mitigate risk and then establish the foundations of what to look for in a plan. No other broker agency, PEO, etc. has this valuable information – making this the ultimate form of differentiation.
With eHealthApp, if a broker spends their time and treasure to collect this data, it belongs to them. Unlike eHealthApp’s competitors who will take away the broker’s asset, we will not take this data away upon a BOR change.
What about claims data?
There are multiple issues with claims data that thwarts brokers from being true and professional consultants.
Claims data is historical – meaning it is backward looking and tells you what has happened in the past.
There are holes in the data, especially when looking at pharmacy underwriting. Not every drug taken by every employee is being recorded, and therefore available.
Claims data is also de-identified, and therefore ties brokers’ hands from being able to implement risk mitigation tactics. For example, if one employee is responsible for the claims, but is not longer working for that group – that employee could still be blowing up the group and costing your clients tens of thousands of dollars. And, you are not in a position to detect this until well after the fact.
Most importantly, this information is not proprietary to your firm.
Any broker with relatively little effort can obtain these types of data, meaning there is nothing you as a consultant has that provides a competitive edge for winning / retaining a group and providing superior value.
Don’t be a messenger with health applications.
Most brokers view collecting health applications as a transaction – something they collect, pass along to underwriters who then pass back a quote.
Brokers who pass health data on to underwriters, without assessing it to strategically mitigate risk, turn themselves into messengers.
eHealthApp speaks to hundreds of brokers and has built an inventory of risk mitigation techniques. Ask us about the techniques and our Best Fit Broker Playbook.
Looking to sell your book of business?
Having the historical and current health data on your groups makes your book even more valuable because the groups are less likely to switch brokers after the change because no one else will know the detailed and specific information of their employees, meaning they would need to start all over again.
Ready to be a true and professional broker consultant?
Start collecting health applications on your group clients to provide real and tangible value.
Let your clients know you are keeping an eye on their health, so the moment you can quote health underwritten, you will.
Educate clients on the value of health applications
Educate clients on the value of health applications Many brokers report group clients are reluctant to fill out health applications. This means groups don’t understand the real value a broker can provide by knowing the group’s specific health. Educate your clients on the value Unfortunately, group clients have been trained that all a broker needs in
Health Applications | To collect or not to collect?
Health Applications To collect or not to collect? Many brokers think collecting health applications is a necessary evil. Health applications are an asset and required to be a true consultant. Health applications are required to be a true consultant As with any professional consultant or advisor, there is a lot of rigor when it comes