Online CDHP Experiences Drive Members To The Contact Center

Members of consumer-directed health plans (CDHPs) are more engaged in managing their healthcare than are other commercially insured consumers, and they're also more likely to interact with their health plan online. Unfortunately, current online CDHP member experiences fail to enable potential self-servers to complete basic goals online, such as finding adequate coverage and claims information. Since CDHP members have a larger financial stake in their healthcare decisions, they don't give up after encountering flawed health plan Web sites. They escalate to more expensive, agent-assisted channels for service — an added burden for them and an added cost for their insurers. To save money and improve member experiences, health plan customer experience professionals should determine what members want online, build trust in their sites with clear, easily accessible information, tie site improvements to business results to get funding, and then focus on the most essential pairs of channels to start streamlining channel transitions that remain necessary.