Improved marketing techniques separate lions from domestic cats in Medicare Advantage open enrollment by 2023.
Industry giants UnitedHealthcare and Himana led the private healthcare market this plan year, accounting for more than 70% of new enrollments and exceeding the industry average growth rate of 7%. These major insurers have strengthened their positions, adapting to new regulatory and market realities.
In addition to offering popular extras such as dental benefits, over-the-counter benefits and healthy meal assistance, major insurers have adapted their marketing strategies to stand out in an increasingly crowded market. and regulated, said Brad Ellis. Senior Director of Fitch Ratings.
The average beneficiary had 43 Medicare Advantage plans, and 66 percent of Medicare Advantage plans did not charge for prescription drug coverage, according to the Kaiser Family Foundation. "There is some commoditization of Medicare benefits, so it comes down to pricing and marketing," Ellis said. "You can add so many bells and whistles."
In conjunction with a federal Medicare benefits marketing campaign led by the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services, consumer communications strategies for insurance companies are targeted.
"CMS was subject to various regulatory restrictions or requirements very late in the annual registration period, and they wanted to take a lot of their content off the market," said CEO Scott Wedel. Stephens Service Company Inc
To address a growing number of consumer complaints, CMS announced this year that insurers are liable for the conduct of any customer-facing party before, during and after enrollment, unless the carrier has contracted with a distributor. rules.
CMS also added a member satisfaction star for Medicare Advantage insurers, which provides the extra money needed to provide generous benefits and is used by brokers as a signal of quality. A greater focus on the shopping experience has caused insurers to rethink their relationship with direct-to-consumer call centers and slowed the growth of Medicare Advantage.
"Joe Namath's TV appearances were very low this year because these big fundraisers lost about 70% of his TV advertising," says George Renudin Himana, president of Medicare and Medicare. "When you add that up, I think the slowdown in growth is not necessarily shocking," he said. (Namat is a retired professional soccer player and spokesperson for Medicare Hillline, a mediation.)
After missing enrollment goals for the 2022 Plan, Humana reasserted itself, investing $1 billion in Medicare benefits and expanding distribution channels. And the effort paid off: Himana, Medicare's second-largest provider with 5.5 million plan members, signed up 463,100 new members this year, or about 23 percent of the total, according to federal data released last month.
Renaudin said the insurance company pays third-party merchants like GoHealth on par with what its competitors offer. But there was a caveat. Humana, like other insurers, requires brokers to tell patients about the total value of a benefit package, rather than highlighting specific features like dental coverage. The insurance company offered bonuses to salespeople who changed customer numbers during open enrollment.
"We don't just match our competitors, our approach is to improve the quality of sales, which leads to better loyalty.
Similarly, Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan attributed a 9% increase in Medicare benefits to stronger marketing. The internal company numbers differ from the CMS report. Many insurance companies noticed discrepancies and CMS was late in publishing enrollment information. CMS says submissions will be delayed by months, but will reflect what insurance companies are offering.
The Covid-19 pandemic has increased the importance of television advertising, but instead of relying on outside marketers to promote their products, Blues owners have taken advantage of a 30-minute broadcast plan for internal marketers, said Rick Nutter, vice president of the sole proprietorship. . He said the not-for-profit insurer has increased spending on digital advertising and has targeted platforms such as Spotify. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan tracks the number of leads each digital channel generates each week and uses this data to adjust marketing spend in real time.
"Experiment and learn every year. The advantage of digital marketing is that you can make changes immediately," said Nutter. Depending on the results you get, you can change it weekly or almost daily.
