New Cigna tool links member data for personalized health management

A new product from Cigna Healthcare is taking aim at high healthcare costs by delivering more personalized advice and care management, the company announced earlier this week.

Health Sense, a member-facing tool, connects health, benefits and cost information to personalize the consumer experience and provide a more actionable clinical support model, Cigna said.

"Health care becomes harder and often more costly when people must navigate disconnected information, benefits and support on their own," Bryan Holgerson, president of Cigna Healthcare U.S., said in the announcement.

"Health Sense is designed to create a more complete view of each person’s needs and circumstances, connecting people to relevant support sooner through a continuous, personalized experience that helps employers get more value from their health care investments," added Holgerson, who is also executive vice president of customer health outcomes at The Cigna Group.

Healthcare has a cost problem, with analysts anticipating a 9% medical cost trend spike in the upcoming year. According to Cigna, a third of healthcare spending is tied to inefficiency, such as duplicative care, administrative complexity, poor care coordination and missed opportunities to get members the right care at the right time.

Health Sense intends to solve that spending issue by drawing together traditionally siloed patient information into a single consumer source for personalized care intervention. Cigna projects the tool will cut inefficient spending by 10% by 2030, which could result in more affordable costs for consumers and employers.

Notably, the tool intends to create a personalized care experience, meaning no two members should get the same guidance from Health Sense. A cancer patient might get help finding a case manager, while someone with a cardiometabolic condition might get medication adherence support, Cigna offered as examples.

The tool does this by pulling in health records, pharmacy claims data and benefits information, the payer said. Using the expertise of Cigna clinicians, the tool helps provide early, tailored advice to users, offering clear choices and practical next steps. This direct information could help reduce the duplicative care that happens when healthcare consumers are left without navigation support.

Ideally, this pays off in a better member experience, Cigna said. Take, for example, an individual with a new chronic disease diagnosis. That member will need to navigate their health history and a new slate of care management instructions.

This can be arduous, Cigna indicated, citing data from its subsidiary Evernorth, which shows that 6 in 10 Americans aren't confident they understand all of their health benefits. Another 56% said navigating care, benefits and vendor offerings is frustrating.

Health Sense was designed to pull together relevant member information to help users make sense of their health benefits and care management needs.

Sara Heath is an executive editor at Xtelligent Healthcare Media, where she covers patient engagement, healthcare policy and health IT.