America's Benefit Specialist January-February 2023

PRODUCT NEWS

working directly with employees to resolve any issues with carriers or pro viders. Its technology integrates with Gusto, Rippling, Justworks, ADP and more to make healthcare one of the easiest benefits for HR to oversee. Pebble can offer companies with up to 500+ employees differentiat ed healthcare plans by tackling the technical hurdles that have kept other companies away. With so many issues to solve in a fundamentally broken health/benefits space, others have been distracted by smaller problems that are easier to fix. By contrast, Pebble opted to make a deep investment in tech nology, including the AI work for plan structuring and partner integrations, to create better options for startups. To learn more, visit www.pebble. health. SIDECAR HEALTH EXPANDS OHIO MAJOR MEDICAL PLAN OFFERING FOR EMPLOYERS Sidecar Health consumer-driven health plans offer major medical coverage with no network restrictions or prior authorizations. The company recent ly unveiled a plan-design option for employer groups in Ohio that provides first-dollar coverage for commonly used services including primary care provider visits, telehealth visits, special ist provider visits, mental health provid er visits and generic Rx drugs. “We’re going beyond preventive care to provide first-dollar coverage for the most commonly used medical care,” said Patrick Quigley, Sidecar Health co-founder and CEO. “As more employ ers roll out high-deductible plans, this new plan design unlocks an additional avenue to removing obstacles, such as not having met a deductible, from getting quality healthcare.” In addition to the plans already available to employers in Ohio, Sidecar Health identified an opportunity to add additional benefits for employers that are used to co-pay plans. “In designing

this plan, it was important to further reduce cost sharing so we made sure it enables members to access care with no cost,” continued Quigley. By empowering members to shop for care and pay for that care at time of service, the Sidecar Health model focuses on lowering administrative costs, not benefits. “We can still offer very competitive premiums because of the way the model works, while offering better coverage and access,” said Doug Lynch, chief actuary, Sidecar Health. Visit www.sidecarhealth.com for more information. GROW THERAPY ANNOUNCES MULTI-STATE EXPANSION Grow Therapy, a provider-centric mental health group using technology to make high-quality mental healthcare accessi ble and affordable to all Americans, has announced the expansion of its services to multiple states across the U.S. The expansion includes availability in 22 new states, making Grow Therapy services now available in 36 states. The expansion also means the addition of 657 new therapists being added to the Grow Therapy marketplace (348 in the newly added states and 309 in already existing states). The newly added states include New Hampshire, Wisconsin, Arkansas, Del aware, New Jersey, New York, Arizona, Kansas, Michigan, Washington, Minne sota, Louisiana, North Carolina, Alabama, Mississippi, Hawaii, Montana, Utah, Tennessee, Nevada, Iowa and Missouri. “We’re on a mission to bridge the gap between therapists and people seeking mental health care,” said CEO and Co-Founder Jake Cooper. “Unfortu nately, that gap has only gotten wider since the onset of the pandemic as providers have struggled to keep pace with drastically increased demand. By removing barriers for both consumers and providers, we’re making strides to narrow the deficit.” Grow Therapy offers a marketplace for patients to find the right thera

pist; an end-to-end insurance engine that lets providers seamlessly accept insurance, and patients reduce their costs through in-network benefits; and a comprehensive EHR platform for pro viders to take medical notes, schedule visits and engage with their clients. The multi-state expansion follows massive growth for the company since launching in 2020, including enabling thousands of providers to start their own practice and serving hundreds of thou sands of patients. Today, Grow Therapy has a team of 120 employees and the company has seen 11x growth YOY. More information can be found at www.growtherapy.com. LINCOLN FINANCIAL GROUP ENHANCES SUPPLEMENTAL HEALTH SUITE Amid rising interest in supplemental health coverages, Lincoln Financial Group has expanded its Hospital In demnity insurance coverage to include additional benefit options. The new en hancements include two family-focused newborn care options and an additional benefit for healthcare clients that in cludes coverage when being treated at an employer-affiliated hospital. In today’s economic environment, the financial security provided by supplemental health benefits is more important than ever, nearly half (48%) of U.S. workers surveyed say they feel more concerned about paying for healthcare expenses, and more than 77% say they have less room in their budget for unexpected expenses as a result of inflation. With Hospital Indem nity insurance, a lump-sum payment is provided when a covered employee or family member is admitted to the hos pital or undergoes outpatient surgery for a covered illness or injury. Together with accident and critical illness insur ance, Hospital Indemnity helps covered Americans with everyday expenses that may not be included in their traditional medical insurance.

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