eHealth Launches New "Customer Center" Tool Ahead of Medicare Annual Enrollment Period to Support Increased Engagement and Retention

Rhea-AI Summary

eHealth, Inc. (NASDAQ: EHTH) has launched a new Customer Center to enhance consumer engagement ahead of Medicare's Annual Enrollment Period. This secure platform allows users to create personalized profiles with their health care data, facilitating better coverage comparisons and recommendations. The company anticipates a significant increase in online Medicare applications, projecting that 45% to 50% of applications will be submitted online in Q4 2020, up from 36% last year. eHealth aims to continue expanding the Customer Center's functionality to boost member retention.

Positive

• Anticipated increase in online Medicare applications from 36% to 45%-50% in Q4 2020.
• User-friendly Customer Center supports enhanced engagement and retention.

Negative

• None.

SANTA CLARA, Calif., Oct. 2, 2020 /PRNewswire/ -- Today eHealth, Inc. (NASDAQ: EHTH) (eHealth.com) announced the launch of its new Customer Center, designed to support consumer engagement and retention efforts for Medicare's upcoming Annual Enrollment Period and beyond.

With the launch of the Customer Center, eHealth's Medicare customers will be invited – but not required – to create a secure personal profile describing their prescription drugs, preferred doctors and pharmacies, their current Medicare insurance plan, and other relevant heath care data. Users will be able to import information provided to eHealth sales agents by phone into their profile, update their personal data on an ongoing basis, and print out copies of their drug regimen and doctors for use at their pharmacy or medical provider's office, or for personal reference.

Since Medicare beneficiaries' health care needs and key plan benefits can change over time, the Customer Center enables users to quickly access personalized plan comparisons and recommendations based on their saved profile, helping them identify and maintain the best Medicare coverage for their needs year after year.

"Since we facilitated the first-ever online sale of an individual and family health insurance plan back in 1998, eHealth has been at the vanguard of the digital revolution in the health insurance market," said eHealth CEO Scott Flanders. "We've helped to drive an industry toward greater transparency and choice as an advocate and unbiased resource for health insurance consumers. The launch of our new Customer Center is the next step in that evolution and an important element of our strategy to enhance member retention and recapture."

eHealth now expects a significant increase in the number of Medicare applications submitted online this year compared to 2019. Fourth quarter 2020 online applications, which include both unassisted and partially agent-assisted online applications, are expected to contribute 45% to 50% of total applications for Medicare major medical products, compared to 36% in the fourth quarter a year ago. For the full year 2020, online applications, which include both unassisted and partially agent-assisted online applications, are expected to represent 37% to 40% of total Medicare major medical applications, compared to 27% a year ago.

"The digital health sector is on a strong upward trajectory," Mr. Flanders continued. "We believe eHealth has something unique to offer in this space and we look forward to expanding the functionality of the new Customer Center in innovative directions in the months to come."

Forward-Looking Statements
This press release contains statements that are forward-looking statements as defined within the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. These include statements regarding member retention and recapture, our expectations regarding Medicare applications submitted online, and our customer center technology.  These forward-looking statements are inherently subject to various risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from the statements made, including risks associated with our ability to enroll and retain customers, customer satisfaction of our service, our ability to safeguard the security and privacy of confidential data, and the performance, reliability and availability of our ecommerce platform.  Other factors that could cause operating, financial and other results to differ are described in eHealth's most recent Quarterly Report on Form 10-Q or Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission and available on the investor relations page of eHealth's website at www.ehealthinsurance.com and on the Securities and Exchange Commission's website at www.sec.gov.  The Company undertakes no obligation to update any forward looking statement to conform to actual results or changes in intentions or expectations.

About eHealth
eHealth, Inc. (NASDAQ: EHTH) operates a leading health insurance marketplace at eHealth.com and eHealthMedicare.com with a technology and service platform that provides consumer engagement, education and health insurance enrollment solutions. Our mission is to connect every person with the highest quality, most affordable health insurance and Medicare plans for their life circumstances. Our platform integrates proprietary and third-party developed educational content regarding health insurance plans with decision support tools to aid consumers in what has traditionally been a confusing and opaque health insurance purchasing process, and to help them obtain the health insurance products that meet their individual health and economic needs. Our omni-channel consumer engagement platform is designed to meet the consumer wherever they prefer to engage with us, and enables consumers to use our services online, through interactive chat, or by telephone with a licensed insurance agent. We have created a marketplace that offers consumers a broad choice of insurance products that include thousands of Medicare Advantage, Medicare Supplement, Medicare Part D prescription drug, individual and family, small business and other ancillary health insurance products from over 180 health insurance carriers across all fifty states and the District of Columbia.

For media inquiries, please contact:

Lara Sasken
Vice President, Corporate Communications
lara.sasken@ehealth.com

For investor inquiries, please contact:

Kate Sidorovich, CFA
Vice President, Investor Relations
650-210-3111
kate.sidorovich@ehealth.com

 

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SOURCE eHealth, Inc.

FAQ

What is the purpose of eHealth's new Customer Center?

The new Customer Center is designed to enhance consumer engagement and retention for Medicare's upcoming Annual Enrollment Period by allowing users to create personalized health care profiles.

What percentage of Medicare applications does eHealth expect to come from online submissions in Q4 2020?

eHealth expects 45% to 50% of Medicare applications to be submitted online in Q4 2020, an increase from 36% in the previous year.

How has eHealth's launch of the Customer Center impacted their business strategy?

The launch of the Customer Center is a key element of eHealth's strategy to enhance member retention and recapture by providing personalized recommendations.

When did eHealth announce the launch of the Customer Center?

eHealth announced the launch of the Customer Center on October 2, 2020.