The Freedom to Choose Your Own Insurance with Chris Ellis and Adam Stevenson

Raising Health

Chris Ellis, CEO and Adam Stevenson, president, both cofounders of Thatch, join Julie Yoo and Jay Rughani of a16z Bio + Health.

In early 2020, a new policy called ICHRA altered the insurance market, which had remained largely unchanged for decades. As you’ll hear in the episode, it’s been slow to catch on — but the cofounders of Thatch think it’s a game changer. Together, they discuss these key takeaways:

Consumers as a growing class of payor:

• Traditionally employers shouldered healthcare costs, but now consumers are paying more out of pocket and making purchasing decisions directly for their health coverage.
• ICHRA represents a major shift, allowing companies to give employees tax-free dollars to shop for personalized health plans.
• Distributed teams and geographic diversity are creating friction in providing effective healthcare via traditional group plans. Employees may find that certain doctors aren’t covered and plans aren’t tailored to their needs, making ICHRA an increasingly attractive option for employers.

The fintech intersection

• How do you make spending healthcare dollars easy, secure, and efficient? By leveraging fintech solutions that ensure employees use healthcare dollars on what matters most for them.
• This alignment between fintech and healthcare could enable more flexible, localized plans, with individuals choosing the add-ons that work best for them at that moment in their lives.