The Benefits Playbook is a podcast covering all things employee healthcare, brought to you by Collective Health. Each episode features an in-depth conversation between Sasha Yamaguchi, Commercial Leader at Collective Health, and an expert in the health benefits industry.
Our host Sasha Yamaguchi links up with John Meister, Principal and Senior Vice President of Employee Benefits at Newfront, to talk about all things self-funding in this episode of The Benefits Playbook. At Newfront, John takes pride in providing top-tier consulting, creative strategies, and fierce employee advocacy on behalf of his clients. Prior to Newfront, John led client strategy and execution in a wide variety of verticals, including technology, professional services, and healthcare at Woodruff Sawyer.
John has helped many clients transition to self-funded health benefits over the years, and he and Sasha dive deep into the move to self-funding. They also discuss key components of a great member experience and how to build point solutions into benefits programs.
“When I talk with some companies that are unfamiliar with self-funding, they think it’s just this totally apples-to-oranges approach. So I explain to them, hey, built into your premiums right now, we can look at what the insurance companies are doing. They have stop-loss built in, they have PBMs, they have layers of admin costs and profit that comprise the premium rate that you’re getting charged. And it’s usually a big light bulb moment for a lot of clients, like, ‘Oh, this isn’t actually that different from what I’m doing now.’”
– John Meister
Here are some insights from their conversation:
- How Newfront is changing the way brokerages leverage technology
- How John talks to his clients about moving to self-funding
- The key components of a great member experience
- The difference that point solutions can make in a benefits program
- Advice from John for those new to the industry
Listen to the full episode above, or on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, or wherever you listen to podcasts.
