Dive Brief:
- Two former executives from shuttered health insurance co-ops are taking roles at a recent Denver-based start-up, Melody Health Insurance, in a fresh bid to impact the individual market, notes Modern Healthcare.
- Tom Zumtobel will serve as Melody's President of Western Markets. He previously served as CEO of Nevada Health CO-OP and CEO of Arizona's Meritus Health Partners in Arizona, two non-profit co-ops that succombed to financial difficulties in 2015.
- Tracy Faigin will be Melody's new chief marketing officer following her equivalent role at Colorado HealthOP, which also closed in December amid questions around whether the state's decision was financially necessary or partly political in nature.
Dive Insight:
It's likely to be another difficult road for Melody and any other new entrants to the individual health insurance market, experts suggest, though that isn't to say they can't become profitable, as suggested by the strong performance of Maryland co-op Evergreen, which forecasts "a modest profit" for 2016.
Faigin told the media the pair of co-op veterans are coming to Melody because they still want to create a better experience for individuals purchasing their own health insurance.
At the same time as these hirings, Melody also announced the addition of Bill Bakken as the company's Executive Vice President, Services and Operations. Bakken comes from a health insurance and tech background that includes the launch of several health startups and a position as Senior VP, Services at TriZetto. Melody was founded by former TriZetto execs Sal Gentile and David Pinkert.
The company says it will launch this fall in Las Vegas, Nevada and Cheyenne, Wyoming and plans to expand into two additional markets each following year.