The Healthcare Heist - Rise of the American Healthcare Consumer

There are five main segments of health CARE and health INSURANCE. Those five segments are riddled with misaligned incentives and hidden profits for insurers, pharmacy brokers, and the healthcare systems. 

The American Healthcare Consumer must be aware of the pitfalls and possibilities th...

Transparency in healthcare isn't just about revealing costs; it's about empowering employers to navigate a complex system, save on inflated expenses, and truly prioritize their employees' well-being. In this episode, Jamie Greenleaf discusses the complex world of fiduciary responsibilities within healthcare plans. She dissects and reveals the challenges faced by plan sponsors, CEOs, CFOs, and HR directors. Wendy emphasizes the impo...

Paytient makes it easier for your employees to afford the care they need – regardless of their credit history.

Lou and Chris discuss the impact skyrocketing out-of-pocket costs have on people financially and medically. Paytient is a simple plan addition that ensures members do not have to avoid necessary medical care, and can fi...

Employers have a tremendous opportunity to take control of health care spending with the incredible growth of technology in the healthcare space. The recent legislation also increases the fiduciary responsibility of plan sponsors, and companies like Talon can unleash actionable data like never before. In this episode, Lou and Mark Galvin discuss healthcare's challenges, opportunities, and future. The day the Transparency in Coverag...

Marshall Allen is the second two-time guest of Benefits with Friends. He and Lou previously discussed his book "Never Pay the First Bill: And Other Ways to Fight the Health Care System and Win." This time, the conversation focuses on Marshall's project aimed at empowering the American Healthcare Consumer: The Never Pay Pathway. The Never Pay Pathway is an educational platform with 16 videos, averaging 5 minutes. The videos will hel...

Consumerism in healthcare should empower patients to make better medical choices. Instead, it penalizes them with higher hospital prices when making bad decisions and forces them to acquire extremely costly services. Leo Wisniewski, Co-Founder and CIO at Health Cost Labs, does not want such unethical practices to thrive in this space. In this episode, he joins Louis Bernardi to share the mobile applicati...

Ironically, this episode aired live on the 4th of May, which is commonly referred to as "May the Force", a play on the iconic line from Star Wars, "May the Force be with you!" Fittingly, we are joined by Allison De Paoli, the Founder of Altiqe Consulting, who is a "Force" in the benefits arena, having received recognition from many ind...

After working as an employed physician in a major hospital system for 8 years, Dr. Jeffrey Gold began to get increasingly frustrated with the bureaucracy of insurance-based medicine that resulted in less of his time spent on caring for his patients in the way he envisioned since he was considering medicine as a career. In 2014, he opened the first independent Direct Primary Care practice in Massachusetts – Gold Direct Care PC....

Lou will be joined by Korb Matosich, Co-Founder, CEO and Board Member of Asserta Health. Korb has an unusual depth of experience managing all sides of health care payment. He oversaw both Revenue Cycle Management and Payment Integrity businesses at Ingenix, now Optum, at UnitedHealth Group. He also served as the CEO of AAPC, an organization that certifies billers and coders. Asser...

Lou and his guest, Brian Del Savio will discuss the issues employers have addressing the real struggles their employees face such as mental health and affordable access to fundamental healthcare.

Streamlined and automated processes not only help save time and effort but also money. For patients, this means having to save and avoid the unnecessary costs caused by errors and overcharging. Pranov Duggasani and Zoe Holderness

For the past three decades, the American healthcare consumer has been the leverage used by insurance carriers and healthcare systems against each other. Which strategies must be implemented to give them back this leverage and simply settle with the lowest plans? Louis Bernardi talks with Chris Hamilton of Hotchkiss Insurance about the best approaches in mending the gap between health insurance and healthcare. They break down how to...

There is probably no aspect of healthcare that has changed as dramatically over the last few years as insurance claims data. For every C-Suite leader or HR manager to justify their next rate increase, they must have the right amount of data at their disposal, gathered from the clients themselves. However, most employers do not have any access to this information. Jacob Sheridan

Lou and Sims Tillirson will discuss the strategies and solutions that forward thinking HR teams are utilizing to keep their employees engaged and connected.

HR leaders have to balance the time it takes to engage with members and the time they need to get stuff done. The extent of the remote work force today makes this even more challenging.<...

Marshall Allen’s book, "Never Pay the First Bill: And Other Ways to Fight the Health Care System and Win," shows individuals and employers how they can push back against the high cost of health care. It's led to Allen Health Academy, which takes the principles of the book and communicates them through an engaging series of health care literacy videos for consumers. The videos are currently in production. Marshall’s stories have bee...

Emma Fox is Partner and COO of E-Powered Benefits. Her firm helps employers throughout the US customize health plans using alternative healthcare models that are capable of significantly enhancing benefits for members while at the same time lowering the cost by 20-40% (or more). The key is increasing awareness and resetting customer expectations through education. The current fee-for-service delivery system ensures a misa...

This episode of Benefits with Friends will feature Patrick Moore, President of Axim Fringe Solutions. Patrick is an Emerging Star in the benefits arena nationally who recently retired from the United States Marine Corps. How ironic that he will be appearing on our show on the 247th Birthday of the US Marine Corps...Oorah! AXIM Fringe Solutions Group, LLC (AXIM FSG) is the nation’s first and only health a...