Publish Date: April 2016 By Craig Kasten
Powering Healthcare for the Digital Age
In the 20th century, one of the ways insurance companies demonstrated prosperity and stability was by acquiring land. Architecturally interesting buildings spread across sprawling campuses housed extensive workforces and massive file rooms, all of which were necessary since the bulk of the work was being performed manually.
But we’re no longer in the 20th century. Most U.S. industries, such as retail, telecom, and supply chain, are increasingly doing most of their business in cyberspace using automated systems. Even the staid manufacturing industry is incorporating automation into the mix. Yet in many cases, health payers in particular are still clinging to the old manual model, often driven by the sunk cost of large technology investments.
With the Affordable Care Act bringing health insurance to 20 million more consumers, it’s easy for manual systems to become overwhelmed quickly. Given the high expectations driven by every other aspect of their online lives, neither consumers nor providers will stand for that for very long. At which point, both sides will begin looking for a better option.
There is hope, however. Specific innovations in benefits administration software are paving the way and supplying the technological framework to a future primarily based in cyberspace rather than buildings filled with people. Examples include:
The reality is the future is coming on fast. And it’s not in gigantic buildings set on picturesque surroundings. It’s in cyberspace. The sooner health payers acknowledge this trend and take action, the better chance they’ll have of making it through this century and into the next.
Craig Kasten leads SKYGEN USA in creating next-generation technology-enabled solutions that power the business of healthcare through the digital age. Through his visionary leadership, SKYGEN USA leads the market with transformational technology and service offerings that reinvent healthcare benefits.
Mr. Kasten is an accomplished leader whose career in the managed healthcare industry spans 30 years. He is the founder and co-founder of several organizations which have evolved to become part of SKYGEN USA’s suite of world-class solutions. He also co-founded Doral Dental USA and grew the company to a market-dominant position before its sale to DentaQuest Ventures. Mr. Kasten continues to provide vision, strategic direction and creative support for functional design innovations to the Enterprise System, SKYGEN USA’s proprietary software platform.
Prior to launching his entrepreneurial career, Mr. Kasten served concurrently as the Chief Operating Officer and Chief Financial Officer of CareNetwork, Inc., a publicly traded regional health plan later acquired by Humana. Mr. Kasten holds a Bachelor’s Degree from Marquette University and an MBA from the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee. He has been licensed as a Certified Public Accountant in the State of Wisconsin.
Mr. Kasten was honored as Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst & Young in 2003. In 2005, he was named a Distinguished Alumnus by the Marquette University School of Business Administration.