LAS VEGAS—A new partnership aims to make it simpler for plans to integrate ancillary benefits such as transportation for health-related social needs and grocery delivery into their packages.
Uber Health announced Monday a partnership with one of the nation's leading ancillary benefits companies to scale access to rides and grocery delivery. NationsBenefits is a benefits administrator that provides plans with a flex card benefit option that they can tailor to their unique member populations.
The partnership between the two companies further expands the opportunity for Medicare Advantage members to use health benefit cards on the ride-sharing app, according to the companies.
Through the partnership, millions of NationsBenefits members can use their flex cards for rides on Uber and same-day delivery of grocery items on Uber Eats.
The two companies will also work together to enable members to shop directly for groceries on the Uber Eats app through the Nations Marketplace in the future, executives said.
The two companies are working together to make it easier for older adults to book and pay for services, which encourages members to utilize their entitlements. According to recent CDC data, 5.7% of adults—an estimated 14 million people—lacked reliable transportation for daily living in the past 12 months, while poor nutrition is a leading cause of illness in the United States.
High-quality ancillary benefits can help fill in the gaps and improve health outcomes, but members often find it challenging to navigate their benefits.
“Our partnership with NationsBenefits makes accessing and using existing ancillary benefits easy and convenient, as we continue to unlock flex cards on our platform to reach even more people and boost their overall access to care through rides and grocery delivery,” said Zachary Clark, Uber Health's global head of health, in a statement. "This is another major step forward in making benefits simpler at scale, especially for Medicare Advantage members.”
In the future, members will be able to see their flex card balance directly in the Uber app, add their personal payment method to the app to experience easy checkout with both covered and personal items in the same shopping cart; and shop directly for groceries on the NationsBenefits marketplace, the companies said.
Health plans also will be able to configure transportation access to help them get to the grocery story and medical appointments.
“Uber Health enables us to deliver high-value benefits to our members and help them have a great experience every step of the way,” said Michael Parker, Co-CEO at NationsBenefits. “This collaboration marks a significant milestone in expanding access for our members and empowering them to lead healthier lives.”
Back in April, the benefits administrator announced it was teaming up with Instacart to integrate grocery delivery into its flex card benefit program, making it available to MA, Medicaid and commercial plans.