Health insurer Aetna to go paperless and add digital payments

From September 2022 onwards, Aetna is getting rid of paper-based explanations of benefits and checks in an effort to go digital, the insurer wrote in an October newsletter.

Why should we care?
Legacy reporting and payment methods have kept insurers behind other types of financial services providers on digital transformation. According to Aetna, customers who don’t enroll to receive direct deposit payments may receive future payments by virtual credit card. Over the coming months, it’s encouraging customers to enroll in direct deposit. In response to Aetna’s move, the California Medical Association said physicians should embrace electronic funds transfers. This isn’t the first time Aetna has indicated it will move to digital payments. In 2014, the company said it was moving providers toward accepting 100% of payments electronically through electronic funds transfers. Pharmacy CVS purchased Aetna in 2018 for $69B, and the company has been on a path to enhance digital payment offerings, including the continued adoption of self-checkout machines across its network of nearly 10,000 stores.