Resurgence of the Payvider
// By Lindsay R. Resnick //
A consumer-centric swimlane unites payers and providers around shared objectives.
In a health sector bombarded with labels such as InsurTech, HlthTech, FemTech, and AgeTech, it’s no surprise that confusion and mis-categorization run rampant. And now there’s another category being promoted by consumer-centric health companies bringing a tightly integrated financial and clinical health care experience to consumers. They call themselves “Payviders.”
Payvider isn’t a new category, but by no means is it mainstream in the health ecosystem. Defining a category has strategic significance — not only for brand differentiation in a sea of sameness, but category definers and leaders usually experience faster growth and receive higher valuations than companies bringing only incremental innovation to market. But there’s a downside — failure to deliver has consequences.
Successfully defining a category typically involves either a breakthrough product or business model. The latter is the case for Payviders. Done right, it takes a mix of laser-focused strategic vision, consistent brand messaging, and cross-functional and cross-organizational buy-in. For a Payvider it means bringing together payer and provider “frenemies,” often bound only by the aftermath of contentious network participation contract negotiations.
Convergence, Control, and Collaboration
Whether a fully integrated consortium such as Kaiser Permanente or Geisinger Health System, an Accountable Care Organization, or a payer/provider joint venture, a Payvider isn’t necessarily born out of ownership. Nor does it come out of legislation or regulation, vertical or horizontal delineation, and certainly not from PR hype or arbitrary labeling.
For Payviders it’s about convergence. It’s about control. It’s about collaboration. Most important, it’s about a holistic approach to patient well-being — delivering better value through integrated care resulting in superior experiences, lower costs, and improved health outcomes.