Consultants are spending more time evaluating vendors and parsing options in growing areas such as mental health, inclusive family planning and chronic care.
The proliferation of benefits providers is giving rise to greater need for integration and navigation, another area where consultants’ advice is increasingly sought, according to the inaugural MedCity News survey called “The 2023 Benefit Consultant Sentiment Index” conducted over the summer in partnership with Quantum Health.
For example, 39% of the 106 consultants surveyed said self-insured employers told them employees are asking for supplemental mental healthcare support beyond what their plans provide. Inclusive family planning support, such as fertility and adoption, was also a preference according to 34% of respondents.
“Integration is becoming sort of a buzzword around ‘how do we bring 20 different point solutions into one place and make it effective and get the utilization we need?’” one consultant said in a follow-up interview to the survey. “It feels like independent navigation companies have done a better job of that.”
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