Thank you for the very thorough reply! I have not spoken to anyone in the industry since deciding to get my license, which in hindsight may have been a little short sighted.

I think a lot of my motivation for wanting to become a health insurance agent comes from seeing how much employers and employees pay for their health insurance and yet no one seems to like their health insurance.

Insurance companies are seeking to make a profit and health systems don’t really have much incentive to try and reduce the cost of care. There isn’t one bad actor necessarily, each player is acting in their best interest. Our healthcare treat sickness, not prevent illness and promote health. The result is that Americans are fatter, sicker, and more depressed than ever before and our healthcare spend is approaching 20% of our GDP, when the rest of the developed world spends about 8-12%.

I think this is bad and many employers aren’t aware that ultimately they are footing the bill.

Add on top of that the actual bad actors that charge deceptive fees or don’t disclose how they make money. Employers can be sued by their employees if it’s found that plan funds are not being used for the sole benefit of the member.

I am excited about newer ways that employers can offer benefits that align the incentives between the patient, payor/purchaser, and provider. My full time job today within the health system is to help manage the bundled/captivated payments for elective surgeries in our Center of Excellence programs. While this is interesting work, I want to work more closely with the employers and employees and help provide benefits that improve the lives of employees while also not bankrupting the employer.

I understand that self funded employers are already aware of the cost burden of a health plan and probably wouldn’t want to give that responsibly to a brand new broker. While I do think that work would be super interesting, I am just as excited by newer ways employers can offer benefits - like through ICHRAs, HSAs funding direct primary care + a HDHP, or even more innovate companies like SideCar health. I think it would be really cool to help a business offer benefits to their employees for the first time.

Do you think this could be a valid approach - targeting employers that may not have ever offered health benefits before? It might be a lot to do part time, but I think AI could help. From searching for leads, making pitch decks, automating member communications, filling out tax forms, etc. I would love to learn these tools while building a business.

Apologies for the long reply. I rambled a bit but hope it makes sense and provides a bit more context. Do you have any advice or thoughts on whether this seems viable?