The evolving role of insurers in employee benefits

SUBA M: It's a really good question. No one should stand still and we're always having to evolve. And I think insurers are in the process of evolving for the future. So the way that I see it is traditionally, health care has always been delivered in a hospital setting and the expectation from our customers is that we're a bill payer. So I need to have this claim paid for, so that's all you do. And we have been quite a passive kind of bill payer at that type of setting.

But I think right now where we are is kind of ecosystem, where it's health and well-being. So it's not just traditional PMI, private medical insurance bill payment, but you also have all these well-being value adds. So that really puts us in a commissioner of care position. So where that is a constraint on identifying and showing value for the customers, we are a commissioner of care.

And I think the future, which is where I think we're already here to some degree, where there's a convergence of health tech, consumerization of health, and then real focus on longevity science, as well as the pressures from the health care systems, which are struggling.

The focus is on prevention and with that consumer expectation where they want to be in control, the role of the insurer is really to convene those choices for individuals. Help them to-- because choice is no use if you don't have the information to make the right choice for you, right? So in terms of personalizing and being proactive and focusing on prevention.

So I think that is the role of the insurer that's evolving. But as you go through evolution, the way to do it is really to ground you in terms of what are your guiding principles, how are you optimizing, what are you optimizing for? And the way that I look at it is down to the four pillars of medical ethics, partly because that's what I go back to. So first, do no harm. Do good. Focus on autonomy, which is the choice and making sure it's inclusive and equitable.

And then you think about justice, making sure that it is for the greater good. And that's where the ESG element and EDI element come in as well. And thinking about is this benefit suite enduring? Is it going to last for a period of time? And make sure that we are turning up or basically ensuring that we're funding for things and curating things that is open and accessible to everybody to get the health outcomes for a healthy nation.

JAMES SPENCER: Fantastic. Lots to think about.

SUBA M: Yes, definitely.

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