Teladoc, Trustmark Announce Virtual-First Health Plan

Trustmark Health Benefits (Trustmark), the employer-sponsored health benefits arm of Trustmark Mutual Holding Company, has announced that it will partner with Teladoc to form a virtual-first health plan called myVirtualCare Access.

“Trustmark creates value for its self-funded clients through innovative and creative solutions that help them make informed decisions that will save them and their members money. We have had a long-standing relationship with Teladoc Health, which provides virtual care to our clients, and we are excited to expand this relationship to include the myVirtualCare Access offering,” said Nancy Eckrich, president of Trustmark Health Benefits, Inc. 

The health plan will be available to self-funded employers in 2022, with Trustmark Health Benefits acting as the third-party administrator for these plans. 

One of the common characteristics of most virtual-first health plans is the emphasis on primary care services. Trustmark Health Benefits and Teladoc’s virtual-first health plan will also embrace this strategy, the press release confirmed. 

By focusing on the primary care provider as the keystone for care, the partners expect to achieve lower costs, better patient outcomes, and better member experience. Members will experience lower out-of-pocket healthcare spending through the zero-dollar copay attached to virtual care services.

“We believe that this transformative offering will expand access to primary care services through an integrated and consumer-centered healthcare experience that will help reduce healthcare costs for employers and their members,” Eckrich said.

However, the press release emphasized that the virtual-first health plan will also integrate mental healthcare and chronic disease management into its platform. Additionally, while the partners underscored the health plan’s virtual capabilities, members will still have access to brick and mortar facilities as well.  

“We believe that virtual-first benefit designs represent the convergence of employer and consumer demand and are the next step in unlocking the true power of whole-person virtual care,” said Kelly Bliss, president of US group health at Teladoc Health. 

“This offering will be compelling for employees that increasingly demand virtual care and for plan-sponsors’ searching for a modern and affordable plan design.”

The partners noted that they worked alongside Aon, a global professional services firm, in order to design the new health plan. Aon projected that the virtual-first approach applied to an employer-sponsored health plan might bring down employers’ costs by up to ten percent.

“The recent expansion of virtual care will continue beyond the global COVID-19 pandemic, spurring even greater adoption,” projected Stephanie DeLorm, senior vice president of health solutions at Aon. “The timing is right for a virtual-first health plan to be offered as an option at annual open enrollment for employee benefits, as organizations continue to look for ways to build more resilient workforces.”

Trustmark and Teladoc’s announcement comes after UnitedHealthcare recently revealed its NavigateNOW virtual-first health plan model. The payer collaborated with Optum to provide a plan that allows for strong care coordination. UnitedHealthcare will launch the plan in nine cities across the US.

UnitedHealthcare also shared its projections for savings in the virtual-first health plan. The payer expected that NavigateNOW costs would be up to 15 percent than other similar health plans that are not built on the virtual-first model. UnitedHealthcare combined its virtual-first health plan with financial incentives around wellness activities.

As payers launch their virtual-first health plans, experts have shared that the top challenge is finding early adopters.

“US healthcare consumers are in this bucket where a majority of them are interested in products like this, but aren't true early adopters,” Oleg Bestsennyy, partner at McKinsey & Company, told HealthPayerIntelligence in a previous interview. 

“A lot of consumers act based on recommendations of providers, so a lot of it depends on providers recommending and nudging them towards such solutions.”