HealthSherpa Application
HealthSherpa is the largest private online marketplace where Americans can access subsidized health insurance under the Affordable Care Act. The eligibility application product was a key initiative in helping millions access health coverage.
My Role
I was the lead and only designer on this project. I also served as a product manager given we did not have this function at HealthSherpa at this time.
Team
I worked directly with a lead engineer along with partners at the Centers for Medicaid & Medicare services (i.e. the federal government).
Resources
I conducted qualitative research, leveraged existing analytics and referenced the CMS companion guide (a dense document outlining all the data collected in the eligibility application).
The problem
The launch of Healthcare.gov in 2014 presented a significant problem: it did not allow third-party websites to enroll consumers. This limitation resulted in widespread confusion and led to many abandoning the enrollment process.
HealthSherpa implemented a 'Double-redirect' system in response (see diagram below). However, this approach still complicated the process in a couple of ways:
People would drop off once they left our site
If they did return, we would get limited data back
Once a user selected a plan, they’d see this.
Double-redirect refers to the user experience where our users are first redirected to Healthcare.gov to create an account and complete an eligibility application and then redirected back to the original website.
Who did I design for?
Consumers looking to enroll in health coverage.
Insurance brokers and agents helping those people enroll.
Health insurance companies looking to gain new members.
I created a journey map leveraging two important resources:
First, the documentation provided by the Centers for Medicaid and Medicare Services (CMS) specified all data that must be collected, why it must be collected, and eligibility outcomes.
Second, we had data from our users on the application process.
Where did I start?
One of the biggest design challenges was providing transparency, support, and guidance while not overwhelming the user.
How might we design an easy and supportive experience for a form that handles many household characteristics and outcomes?
My approach included:
• Chunking relevant information
• Dynamic form branching
• Accessible support, information, and resources
• Step meter with visibility to progress
Design Challenge
Wireframe: Getting Started Page
Wireframe: Step Meter Option 1
Wireframe: Step Meter Option 2
After a series of usability tests, the outcomes were clear.
We learned that expectations up front would ease user anxiety in the involved task of filling out a complex form.
Results that stood out:
• Positive reaction to time estimate
• Positive reaction to the list of what info they’d need
• Positive reaction to reassurance on security of their info
• Positive reaction to the deadline reminder
What did we decide to build?
We also gathered data (quantitative and qualitative) for the application. Winners below:
Step meter with visibility to substeps and progress every step of the way
Chunking of information to break up the form into focused tasks
Dynamic form branching customized to each scenario
Access to support & resources every step of the way
I weighed various trade-offs during the step meter exploration, particularly concerning mobile translation.
Ultimately, we chose the left-column step meter with clear numbered steps for its transparency. For mobile, a horizontal format was necessary, sacrificing some detail and clarity.
Because 90% of our users were using desktop computers for this application process, we felt comfortable with this decision.
Design System
As a small startup with fewer than 20 employees and a design team consisting of just myself and one other designer, we didn't have an established design system. I recognized this as an opportunity to initiate and collectively build a design system, especially given the numerous components required for this project.
Challenges
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We had to work with the Federal Government, which has massive regulatory parameters. This meant we had to mirror their application with complete accuracy, making it challenging to advocate for UX updates, form logic, and more.
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Through user interviews, research, and testing, we learned that many consumers were skeptical of how their data would be used, specifically with the federal government and other agents soliciting their business to gain commissions. We had to factor this transparency within the product experience through lots of contextual help, resources and access to consumer advocates.
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Working with technology provided by the federal government for something so complex was challenging. We referenced companion guides for every possible use case - these guides comprised Excel spreadsheets with up to 50 tabs and thousands of rows of data per tab. It was extremely difficult to parse all that information and apply it to a user experience.