In this episode, our guest Amit Bansal, Partner at Digitalis Ventures and an investor in Ansel, shares his view of the health benefits ecosystem right now—including the trends, opportunities, and challenges that will matter for benefits advisors and administrators in 2021 and beyond.
The Future of Health Benefits in 2021
Health benefits are profoundly impacted by the models that govern how healthcare is delivered, how accessible it is to your employees, and what it costs. After spending years in the health industry from GE Healthcare to working for a healthcare startup that delivers care in rural India, Amit developed a passion for businesses that make healthcare more accessible, improving health outcomes, containing costs, and tailoring healthcare to specific sub-populations, particularly those that have been historically underserved. Today as a Partner at Digitalis Ventures, Amit and his team see several trends, or structural shifts, that are shaping the needs and opportunities on the horizon. Here are a few highlights from our conversation.
Digital health is here to stay.
Healthcare has been adopting digital technology for the past decade in some basic ways, such as electronic health records, online directories, and mobile apps that simplify some healthcare services. Financial services, insurance, and benefits providers have done the same. But, according to Amit, we’re now beginning to get beyond basic digitization to imagine tech-enabled healthcare services, insurance products, financial tools, and other benefits that were not previously possible. These types of businesses are exciting to Amit and his team because they have potential for non-linear growth in the next few years. They also love these companies’ potential to drive social good for communities that haven’t historically had access to the healthcare they need.
COVID-19 was a tipping point for home-based care.
While telehealth was around for years prior, the service has seen massive growth since the pandemic quarantined families at home for most of 2020. The disruption in our normal routines allowed people to consider alternatives to traditional in-office care, such as talking to a doctor on the phone. Amit believes while we may see more patients return to the doctors’ office, telehealth will be a fixture moving forward. New solutions that bring healthcare into the home rather than bringing the patient to the doctor’s office also have huge potential.
Personalized care for specific sub-populations
In a past episode, we spoke with Dick Mucci about how quickly employees’ needs are evolving. It’s more important than ever for employers to ensure that their benefits are still aligned and delivering value to their team.
Amit and his team are particularly interested in companies that deliver healthcare and benefits that are more thoughtfully designed with a specific population in mind. Can we deliver healthcare in a way that’s ideal for men, and can we design a healthcare experience specifically for women? Can we build solutions that specifically address the needs of local BIPOC communities?
Listen to the full episode for more of Amit’s health benefits 2021 outlook, including a list of new benefits every employer and broker should know about.
Amit’s resources
When we asked him for a resource that had a big impact on him, Amit mentioned Thinking in Bets by Annie Duke. Drawn from her experiences as a professional poker player, Annie explores how beliefs and biases color our decision-making and outlines a path to smarter decision-making practices in life and work.
You can check out Amit’s work at Digitalis on their website at https://digitalisventures.com. Note, this episode is for informational and educational purposes only. Amit Bansal and Digitalis Ventures are not compensated, affiliated with, nor compensated by Greenhouse Life Insurance Company.
If you liked the episode, don’t forget to follow or subscribe and leave us a review on your favorite podcast platform. And to get in touch with Ansel, you can email us at sales@joinansel.com. We’d love to hear from you.
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