As insurers gear up for outreach ahead of Medicare open enrollment, the SCAN Group is taking a unique stance by openly acknowledging the cracks in the system.
In its new national campaign—titled "Health Insurance is Broken"—a television advertisement shows Medicare Advantage (MA) enrollees struggling with the sign-up process, facing coverage denials due to unexpected changes and running into issues with prior authorization. SCAN offered Fierce Healthcare an exclusive first look at the campaign.
One person runs into issues with an automated phone system, while another is frustrated by marketing mailers piling up. A third is told at the pharmacy counter that his prescription wasn't covered as other patrons begin to line up behind him.
"Health insurance is clearly broken," the ad concludes. "No other Medicare plan will admit it."
SCAN is planning a full-court press with the campaign that includes TV spots, radio clips, digital advertising and public promotions like billboards. Other ads note that SCAN recognizes the challenges members face and issues a call to action around them.
Nishant Shukla, SCAN's chief marketing officer, told Fierce Healthcare in an interview that it was important to the team to acknowledge the reality of the frustrations members frequently face both enrolling in a Medicare plan and with the coverage they ultimately receive.
MA ads often feature seniors doing fun activities or include celebrity testimonials, which don't encapsulate the program in full.
"I think acknowledging that in a very real way helps to validate that feeling, because a lot of the advertising that's out there today shows seniors sailing and golfing—and yes, they do these things—but, when it comes to their experience of health insurance, it's not always positive," Shukla said. "And I think we have an obligation to showcase that and to let people know that we see them and that we hear them, and to validate their experience."
Sachin Jain, M.D., CEO of the SCAN Group, told Fierce that the ad received a standing ovation from its leadership, which came as a surprise to the marketing team. However, he said the campaign reflects the company's broader mission and its recent branding refresh that focuses on its rebellious roots.
Jain said much of the industry is "talking the talk, but not walking the walk" in terms of addressing the pain points seniors face.
"I think people want to work for a company that is authentic and sees things as they are, because we're done with the toxic positivity of U.S. healthcare. We see where it's led us," Jain said.
Shukla added that the campaign also reflects SCAN's identity as a not-for-profit organization. If the insurer is "truly serious" about improving care for patients, it is obligated to shed light on the more negative aspects of the member experience.
He said it also reflects the company culture that's been built under Jain's leadership.
"This is why I feel so proud about it, and why I'm so excited about it, because it's something that I feel can only uniquely happen at SCAN," Shukla said.
The campaign also launches at a time when the MA market is under significant scrutiny. Jain said the team originally gave Shukla feedback about finding a positive note to end the ad on, and he declined to follow that suggestion.
Jain said that was ultimately the right call.
"We're not saying that we have all the answers to all these problems, and we're not saying that people don't have some of these frustrations with us," he said. "But what we're saying is that, top to bottom, everyone at this company acknowledges that this industry needs to be better."