Into the Future with SPBA President Fred Hunt

Many of you already know Fred Hunt but if you don’t, you’ve probably heard of him. Fred is president of the Society of Professional Benefit Administrators (SPBA) and one of the best friends the TPA industry has.

In 1980, Fred joined the SPBA to support TPA growth and prosperity. Early on, he saw the importance of sharing critical information, educating decision makers on issues affecting TPAs, influencing government policies related to employee benefits and providing advice to members on how to better serve clients. He showed independent TPAs the value of working together to accomplish common goals and the results speak for themselves. With help and guidance from Fred and the SPBA staff, TPAs have weathered many storms, from the call for national health insurance and the HMO grants of the 70’s to the mind-boggling HIPAA requirements and managed care behemoths of the 90’s. Today, more than 450 TPAs are SPBA members, with another 35 or so joining the ranks every year.

Besides being the country’s leading expert on employee benefits and third party administration issues, Fred has an uncanny ability to spot trends. Best Practice recently posed some important questions to Fred about the future of TPAs. Here’s what he had to say:

BP: We know the healthcare landscape is changing, but what’s on the horizon that TPAs should be concerned about?
FH: Let me start by saying I believe we’re on the cusp of the biggest change in the employee benefits industry since ERISA in 1974. Consumer driven healthcare, value-driven healthcare and “markets” in healthcare will revolutionize our business.

BP: Don’t TPAs already know about these changes?
FH: Most do, but I’m not seeing the industry respond with the vigor that it should. The momentum is building quickly and the next phone call could be a client wanting one of these new plans. TPAs must be the experts from the first conversation if they want to secure the business.

BP: How do TPAs go about getting educated?
FH: There is so much information already published on these topics. Yes, it’s complex and hard to digest, but you just have to dig in. The government’s website and publications on value-driven healthcare, for example, are excellent. And, by the way, they’re very complimentary of TPAs. The materials encourage purchasers to ask their TPAs about this or that. The TPAs better be ready to respond.

BP: What should TPAs be doing to take advantage of these changes?
FH: Only the TPAs who pay attention to these new opportunities will thrive. We have to be innovative and try out new approaches. Clients are asking about these topics and we must be ready with fact-based answers and real-life solutions.

BP: What can the TPAA do to help?
FH: I like the idea of the TPAA because, much like my own organization (the SPBA) back in the 70s, it allows members to come together to gain efficiencies while maintaining the most important aspect of a TPA: highly personalized, localized attention and service. Remember the old adage that more heads are better than one? Hopefully you can provide a forum for members to examine, experiment with and implement new opportunities they might not be able to do on their own.