As digital technology continues to reshape all facets of our daily lives, few industries remain unaffected by the need to innovate to meet consumer demands and remain competitive. While some health insurers are leading the pack with their strategies, others are still seeking the right path in their digital transformation.

Although member service concerns vary, there are a few universal concerns felt by all in the health insurance industry, including providing effective education and support to members, long wait times for customer service, and frustrating online experiences.

Today’s consumers want convenience. Now more than ever, self-service plays a vital role in any customer service strategy. Plain and simple, if you can’t meet the needs of your members, they’ll go elsewhere.

Furthermore, payers are under scrutiny to improve CSAT and net promoter scores (NPS) while lowering costs, so more and more payers are turning to smart technology, such as conversational AI, to provide the personalised service they know they need to deliver.

Conversational AI solutions help businesses leverage data, automate processes, and gain or sustain a highly coveted competitive advantage.

The health insurance landscape is increasingly competitive, and your members know this. When it comes to Medicaid Advantage plans, for example, the Kaiser Family Foundation found that in 2019, there were more of these health plans offered in the U.S. than at any other point in the previous 10 years. That Kaiser Family Foundation report shows that about a fifth of Medicare-eligible Americans are able to choose a plan from ten different firms.

So, what can health insurance companies do to create more accessible, faster and more convenient self-service experiences? 

To help health insurers address some of their top challenges, we’ve launched the Verint IVA Member Services Cloud QuickStart. This intelligent virtual assistant (IVA) provides friendly, cost-effective support for insurers’ members through HIPAA-compliant, conversational AI. The IVA supports personalized engagement for nearly every area of customer service operations—providing 24/7 support to members, handling thousands of interactions at a time, and freeing up your contact centre agents to focus on higher-level issues.

Meeting Your Members on Their Terms

What worked for customer service a few years ago won’t always work today. Members have increased expectations, and they’re more digitally savvy than ever—even your older members. Through automation with an IVA, you can provide help when and where they need it, and how they want it.

An IVA allows your members to get the information they need on their terms. With around-the-clock availability, the IVA is always there for your members. And because this solution can handle thousands of interactions at once, there’s no waiting on hold.

Information comes quickly and accurately without stressing your workforce, which is especially valuable during times of crisis like we’re currently experiencing.

The Verint IVA also ensures privacy for your customers. It’s HIPAA compliant and allows members to keep their medical information secure while at the same time receiving information that’s pertinent to their plan and ongoing medical issues. Furthermore, this allows members to ask sensitive or potentially embarrassing questions without the awkwardness that might come from discussing the issue with a live agent.

In short, there’s no judgment with this IVA.

And because this is a sophisticated enterprise-grade IVA built with Verint’s industry-leading conversational AI, the IVA interacts with your members with personalized, empathetic language. It provides the sort of warmth that leads to member loyalty and emulates the caring service that your human agents provide.

Health insurers who invest thoughtfully in human-centric technologies to improve member satisfaction and build trust will win in the digital innovation race.

A Language Your Members Understand

Again, one of the most significant pain points your members encounter in their customer service journey is complex language and confusing industry terms.

A report by content consulting firm Visible Thread last year stated that too often insurers use overly complex language, especially when it came to working with Medicare audiences. “Communicating in plain language is one of the most critical ways to build trust. But 86.6% of insurers are using complicated language, long sentences, passive voice and complex word density to communicate with Medicare’s audience,” the report stated.

Verint IVA Member Services Cloud QuickStart is built to use direct, easy-to-understand and plain-spoken responses so that members aren’t intimidated when seeking information. Plus, the IVA can clarify questions that members ask.

These responses come from our extensive and proven library of natural language intents that are specific to the healthcare industry. This type of automation and seamless self-service help build the sort of customer loyalty you need to keep your customers happy and frustrated members from shopping for a new plan—with a solution designed to grow with your business.

Learn more about the Verint IVA Member Services Cloud QuickStart and request a demo.