Reclaiming the benefits of health insurance
Web and mobile content redesign project for Highmark Health’s Benefits & Coverage experience
TL;DR
Challenge
Overcome user frustration with medical terminology, unclear benefits explanations, and inadequate communication of missing information
Solution
Provide simple, clear explanations of benefits using plain language
My role
UX Writer, Content Strategist
What I did
Content strategy
Information architecture
Desktop and mobile UI copywriting
Research auditing
User interviews
Tools
Figma
Maze
Miro
About Highmark Health
Highmark Health is a healthcare company based based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with a regional focus in Pennsylvania, Delaware, West Virginia, and New York. Their mission is to ‘create remarkable health experiences, freeing people to be their best.’ Highmark approached my consulting firm to produce a massive overhaul of their entire website and mobile app, with the broad goals of improving the user experience and increasing revenue, and microgoals within each section of their experience.
Challenge
My team was tasked with redesigning the Benefits & Coverage section of Highmark’s user experience. Users expressed frustration over information overload, unclear language regarding payment and what exactly Highmark covered, and challenges accessing their benefits booklet. Legal constraints also posed a challenge in incorporating required language without overwhelming or confusing users.
Solution
Provide plain language explanations of the user’s benefits & coverage, and reduce cognitive load by providing only essential information.
Before
After
Objectives
1. Improve clarity around payment, specifically claims, and precisely how much of a procedure’s cost that Highmark will cover.
2. Communicate temporary lack of complete information regarding coverage while assuring users of coverage status.
3. Provide sufficient warning and context for link-out experiences.
4. Ensure compliance with legal requirements.
Methods
Content auditing
I conducted a content audit to identify essential information and find methodical ways of grouping content.
I tagged redundant or excessive information (how much does one really need to know about a drug formulary?) to later delete or revise.
On the other hand, I tagged information that users deemed important, based on their existing feedback from the call center, including the definition of a covered service.
Compliance checking
My team collaborated with legal and compliance teams to ensure required language was present.
We utilized hidden affordances to hide nitty gritty benefits information that is often irrelevant, unless users are looking for a specific benefit.
Review of previous research
Our team’s researcher and I audited qualitative data from Highmark’s call center and contact form submissions to fully understand user’s frustration with payment.
Users complained about the lack of specific information regarding their coverage, such as the meaning of a “partially-covered service” and what amount of coverage that entailed.
Examples of deliverables
Whenever possible, I replaced medical and/or billing terminology with simple, straightforward language. As if your good friend was trying to communicate what your health insurance can do for you.
Plain language explanations
I created a dedicated section to inform users about the temporary unavailability of their benefits booklet.
We assured users that they were actively covered by Highmark, and that this information delay is normal and temporary.
We included contact information for Highmark’s call center so users could reach out for specific questions.
Assurance that Highmark’s got your back
We worked toward a seamless transition with clear call-to-action buttons, improving the overall link-out experience.
We provided a brief description of the destination of each link-out, to set user expectations.
A head’s up when the experience takes you elsewhere
Results
76%
Users who reported the explanation of benefits to be “simple and easy to understand”
84%
Users who felt that the language regarding their coverage was “transparent and honest”.
84%
Users who appreciated the warning before the link-out to an external website.