John Lamb

Talking with the head of my account management team, I asked her if there was anything she'd like brokers to be more aware of. Quite emphatically, slapping her hand on her desk, she said that brokers need to include their software vendors in the benefits planning process. Also, she said they need to understand how important user acceptance testing is to the success of a technology project.

John Lamb on two technologies that will help you keep pace with advancements.

John Lamb provides benefit statement strategies to enhance the total value of benefits to all employees.

John Lamb on why this tool can make HR or benefits manager a “hero” in selecting and purchasing of a new product or service for their organization

John Lamb on the coming market conversion in the employee benefits marketplace.

John Lamb on why advisers should meet with HR to make open enrollment work smoother.

John Lamb on how brokers should analyze their portfolio and determine the maturity level of products they offer.

John Lamb on how to redefine a request for proposal RFP process for a meaningful experience.

John Lamb on how financial drivers of HIXs may outweigh traditional benefits approach.

John Lamb on helping employees that have reached the tipping point on health care spending.

John Lamb on an integrated approach to wellness.

John Lamb shares the new math of employee benefits.

John Lamb shares how health care can be fixed by using an IT mindset.

Broker John Lamb on how total compensation statements can be the ultimate planning tool for PPACA

Behavior change may very well be one of the keys to true health care reform. Given the proper market environment, American consumers will respond accordingly and adapt.

All too often we get caught up in day-to-day activities and forget who it is that we ultimately serve: employees. Without employees signing up for benefits, querying accounts, using services provided and generally trying to take care of themselves and their families, we wouldn't have businesses to run. To bring this point home, I offer the following composite sketches (based on anecdotes from brokers, vendors and employers) - oh to be a fly on the wall ...

Health reform is in such a chaotic state and will continue to be so even after the Supreme Court ruling on the constitutionality of PPACA - and the November election. This is where scenario planning can help. At the April conference for the Institute for HealthCare Consumerism, I listened to a panel on alternative planning scenarios in regard to health reform using scenario planning. Let's see how it works.

When HHS published its template for a Summary of Benefits and Coverage my first thought was, "Wow, this looks a lot like the summary information available in my products and many other products on the market. Now we have yet another version of how to communicate benefits to consumers, and we have the government telling the experts how to do something we have been doing for years."

Many businesses are incorporating social media into their marketing campaigns and into their product and service offerings. But new technology does not always disintermediate. In the case of social media, the "original" social media technology is being integrated in new and innovative ways. So what is it? The plain old telephone. Increasingly, employees and consumers are using social media on their mobile devices or smart phones. At the end of the day, however, a smart phone is still a phone.

In the two years since the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act's passage the health care industry has seen a flurry of activity. And much of this activity has been around technology innovation related to health insurance exchanges, but there are other technologies in the works as well. Here is a retrospective on the last two years of technology innovation, which also serves as a good indicator of where technology will likely be going in HIT as it may relate to PPACA.