HEALTH INSURANCE
Alegeus, HealthSherpa | July 19, 2022
Alegeus, the market leader in healthcare payment solutions, and HealthSherpa, the leading enrollment platform for individual ACA health coverage, have outpaced the industry in individual coverage health reimbursement arrangements (ICHRA) since announcing an integration partnership in the summer of 2020. With updates to their partnership in 2022, both companies are poised to increase their ICHRA enrollments even faster. HealthSherpa, which has seen more than 10X growth in ICHRA pipeline, has enrolled more than three million individuals on its platform in just the last year.
ICHRAs, which were launched at the start of 2020, allow employers to reimburse employees for individual coverage insurance premiums in place of offering them a traditional group-sponsored health plan. ICHRAs can also be used by employees to pay for out-of-pocket healthcare expenses. Organizations administering consumer-directed health benefit programs can set up an ICHRA with Alegeus, and then HealthSherpa helps ICHRA-eligible employees search for and enroll in the best on-exchange and off-exchange individual health plans. This integration bolsters the health reimbursement arrangement (HRA) experience from Alegeus and gives third-party administrators (TPAs) and health plans a strategy for increasing employer and employee participation in health benefit accounts.
“We’re excited about the growing demand our partners have seen for ICHRA since announcing our integration partnership with HealthSherpa,” said Mark Waterstraat, chief customer officer, Alegeus. “Our joint solution is helping employers to deliver quality and cost-effective benefits quickly and efficiently to their employees. While ICHRAs can offer these through employer-defined contribution and better-fit individual coverage plans, they are still new and require a considerable amount of education and awareness. Through this partnership, our efforts are resonating, as evidenced by growing market demand.”
“ICHRAs are a great option for a large and growing number of employers and their employees, and we’ve seen many of our client organizations begin reaping their benefits,” said Ross Honig, president, OCA. “Working with Alegeus and HealthSherpa has allowed OCA to market our ICHRA solution as a “one-stop” product that is seamless and easy to use for brokers, employers, and their employees.”
“Millions of consumers have enrolled in health insurance through HealthSherpa and experienced the increasing appeal of individual coverage. With our new off-exchange options, employers and brokers alike have more options for employees looking to make the transition away from group-sponsored health insurance,” said George Kalogeropolous, CEO, HealthSherpa.
“Millions of consumers have enrolled in health insurance through HealthSherpa and experienced the increasing appeal of individual coverage. With our new off-exchange options, employers and brokers alike have more options for employees looking to make the transition away from group-sponsored health insurance,” said George Kalogeropolous, CEO, HealthSherpa. “ICHRA is changing the dynamic of the relationship between employers and employees on the critical question of health insurance, and we’re thrilled to partner with Alegeus to help employers understand the benefits and communicate them with their employees.”
Alegeus and HealthSherpa recently presented a webinar, “The (Present and) Future of ICHRAs,” showcasing how to simplify the administration of ICHRA benefits and make it easier for consumers to find the care and coverage that meets their needs. To learn more about ICHRAs and view the webinar presentation, please click here or visit https://www.alegeus.com/webinars/.
About HealthSherpa
HealthSherpa builds technology that increases access to health care. We provide end-to-end solutions for consumers, insurance carriers, and agents, delivering a superior ACA marketplace experience to fulfill our mission of connecting people to health coverage under the Affordable Care Act. The HealthSherpa Marketplace, our flagship health insurance enrollment platform, services more than 45,000 agents, 38 carriers, and 9 million consumers.
About Alegeus
With more than 25 years of growth and innovation, Alegeus is the market leader in SaaS-based benefit funding and payment solutions. Our highly flexible, white-label platform powers account-based benefit programs such as HSAs, FSAs, HRAs, COBRA, wellness incentives, lifestyle benefits and beyond. We deliver exceptional user experiences and differentiated capabilities that help our partners strengthen their product offerings, operate more efficiently, and unlock their full growth potential. Our partnerships with the industry’s leading health plans, third-party administrators, financial services and benefit solution providers give Alegeus unparalleled reach in the market, with access to more than 100 million commercially insured Americans. And our unique partnership model empowers our clients to achieve outsized results – growing their programs at a rate that is 3-4X the market, and with the highest NPS scores in the industry. We never compete with our clients in the market – we win when they win. Alegeus is headquartered in Waltham, Mass., with operations centers in Orlando and Bangalore, and a large remote workforce.
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INSURANCE TECHNOLOGY
Vertafore | June 30, 2022
The latest acquisition by the InsurTech industry leader, Vertafore, brings top-tier industry talent and two market-leading MGA solutions into the fold.
Vertafore, the industry standard in cutting-edge insurance technology, announced that it had acquired MGA Systems, the industry's preeminent developer of MGA-specific software.
MGAs need solutions that can keep up with their fast-paced business needs as they seek to diversify into new niche markets and keep their current client. Vertafore's suite will be expanded to include policy administration and rating solutions thanks to MGA Systems' acquisition. This enhances Vertafore's existing MGA offering and gives these critical players in the independent insurance channel a leg up in entering the new markets and rapidly deploying products for their customers.
MGA Systems offers two industry-leading solutions. IMS is a management system with policy administration and back-office functionality, and NetRate is an ISO-based rating platform. These solutions have helped MGA Systems customers accelerate product time to market by integrating industry and technology knowledge. Vertafore is committed to expanding MGA Systems' customization and open architecture, which are key to customer success.
As the MGA market continues to grow, it is more important than ever for MGAs to have integrated technology solutions that strengthen their ability to make informed risk and pricing decisions, MGA Systems has been at the forefront of the industry's work in this area, I am very pleased to welcome the MGA Systems team into the Vertafore family, along with the wealth of talent, passion, and expertise they bring."
Vertafore's CEO Amy Zupon.
Together, MGA Systems and Vertafore's already-extensive MGA management system (AIM™) form the industry's most robust and feature-rich software suite.
After acquiring AgencyZoom™, Vertafore has taken the next step toward its goal of simplifying and automating its products and services across the entire insurance distribution channel by acquiring MGA Systems.
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INSURANCE TECHNOLOGY
JAB Holding | June 22, 2022
On June 20, JAB Holding Company and Fairfax Holdings Limited announced a strategic partnership. JAB’s pet insurance business has agreed to acquire all of Fairfax’s interests in the Crum & Forster Pet Insurance Group™ (“C&F Pet”) and Pethealth Inc., including all of their worldwide operations. Fairfax will also make a $200 million investment in JCP V, JAB’s latest consumer fund.
“Fairfax is very happy to partner with Olivier Goudet and JAB Holding Company,” said Prem Watsa, the Founder, Chairman and CEO of Fairfax. ”JAB has had an outstanding track record over the past 10 years and we expect this to continue. While we have sold our pet insurance business to JAB, we will invest $200 million in their JCP V to become their partners. We expect JAB to soon become leaders in pet healthcare and pet insurance globally. We wish them much success.”
“We are extremely excited to partner with Prem and his organization on this transformational transaction, and to welcome them as a partner in our fund,” said Olivier Goudet, Managing Partner and CEO of JAB. “Prem has an incredible multi-decade track record of building great businesses and compounding returns, and we look forward to accelerating the growth of their pet insurance business as part of our focused pure-play pet insurance platform.”
“Today’s transaction is a major milestone for us in our mission to become a global leader in pet insurance and the pet health ecosystem,” said Dirk Beeckman, CEO of JAB’s pet insurance portfolio. “It also significantly advances our mission of providing the leading health and wellbeing ecosystem for pets through the offering of affordable, comprehensive pet products and brands throughout a pet’s lifecycle. C&F Pet‘s long history of disciplined omni-channel underwriting fits perfectly with our culture, and we look forward to working with the team.”
“We are extremely proud of what we have built and accomplished together in the animal welfare community and the pet insurance ecosystem,” said Gary McGeddy, President of Crum & Forster A&H. “We are confident that JAB will continue to invest and focus on pets and pet parents while growing their global presence and we are excited about the future and our partnership.”
The transaction is expected to close in the second half of 2022, subject to customary closing conditions, including various regulatory approvals.
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