From humble beginnings in the back half of a real estate office in Hollywood, the Walt Disney Company grew into an international media and entertainment giant, with over 200,000 employees and nearly $100 billion in revenue.
How?
Through several diversification initiatives that took the company from a niche cartoon studio into a global media giant.
Payers should take note. Diversifying revenue streams can help mitigate risks while improving financial performance. Here are some diversification strategies for health insurance financial leaders as well as potential revenue models:
Wellness and Preventive Care Platforms
Many health plans are increasingly offering wellness programs and services to their members. These programs promote healthy lifestyles, prevent chronic diseases, and reduce healthcare costs. But they can also generate revenue.
Health insurers can develop comprehensive digital wellness platforms that offer:
- Personalized health coaching
- AI-driven health risk assessments
- Incentive programs for healthy behaviors
- Corporate wellness partnership packages
Potential revenue models include:
- Subscription-based services – Explore services to deliver digital wellness services to non-members.
- Corporate licensing – You could also license the wellness services to businesses that want to offer digital wellness benefits to their employees.
- Data insights monetization – Offer the services to individuals for free while monetizing data insights for either those members or other organizations like technology companies, consultants, or device manufacturers.
Telemedicine and Virtual Care Expansion
The COVID-19 pandemic illustrated the importance of telemedicine and virtual care. But it’s not just for pandemics – consumers enjoy the convenience. Creating integrated telemedicine ecosystems beyond traditional coverage offers insurers another potential new revenue stream. Ideas include:
- Premium virtual care packages
- Specialized chronic disease management programs
- Mental health and wellness consultation services
- 24/7 virtual health concierge services
Revenue model options:
- Tiered service subscriptions – Organizations may successfully implement tiered service subscriptions based on access.
- Per-consultation fees – Alternatively, a fee could be charged for each visit.
- Enterprise wellness contracts – Instead of selling directly to consumers, an alternative revenue model could focus on selling to large enterprises that wish to offer their employees telemedicine solutions.
Healthcare Data and Analytics Services
Health insurers maintain and process a plethora of health data. That mountain of data can be aggregated and anonymized to generate revenue. Here are a few ways:
- Predictive health trend analysis for pharmaceutical companies
- Market intelligence reports for healthcare providers
- Risk assessment tools for employers
- Machine learning-powered healthcare insights
Revenue models include:
- Data licensing – Healthcare providers, pharmaceutical or biotechnology firms, government agencies, software developers, or research organizations may pay a license to access healthcare data.
- Consulting services – Leverage existing analytics expertise to offer those organizations consulting services that help them analyze their data.
- Custom analytics packages – Some customers may be willing to pay for custom analytics packages that explain more about the data insurers maintain.
Localized Healthcare Marketplace
Health plans already maintain a wealth of provider data. Leverage that data to build a digital marketplace platform connecting local healthcare providers to patients seeking care. Deliver transparent pricing information and quality and performance ratings that help patients find the right providers.
Revenue models include:
- Advertising – It may not be the most lucrative option, but selling advertising on the healthcare marketplace is a revenue model option
- Premium listings – Premium listings could also serve as a revenue model.
Employer Health Risk Management Solutions
Health plans that offer insurance products to large employers have an upsell opportunity in the form of comprehensive workplace health solutions, including:
- Predictive health risk assessments
- Customized wellness program design
- Employee health optimization strategies
- ROI analysis for corporate wellness investments
Revenue models include:
- Consulting fees: For employers who want short or long-term guidance, consider consulting engagements with well-defined deliverables.
- Program licensing: Alternatively, the program could be licensed to self-insured employers, third-party administrators who can license the program as a value-added service, health and wellness companies, and health systems and hospital networks.
Certifi’s health insurance premium billing and payment solutions help healthcare payers improve member satisfaction while reducing administrative costs.
