Insurance Apps Proliferate

Given the growing popularity of mobile applications, it’s no surprise to see insurers adding their offerings to the mix.

Pittsburgh, Pa.-based Highmark Inc. has unveiled its Health@Hand iPhone app to give members access to health and wellness features at their fingertips.

“Mobile phone applications open up an entirely new channel for interaction with our members,” says Highmark Web Strategy and Development VP Matthew Childs. “It makes health care and wellness information more portable and accessible."

The app leverages the iPhone’s geolocation abilities to enable Highmark members to quickly find nearby participating Highmark hospitals, urgent care facilities, retail clinics and pharmacies.

The app also provides interactive health information that allows members to look up information about illnesses, symptoms and medical conditions, and a health and wellness section of that offers health coaching tips and information about wellness programs available to Highmark members.

“We chose to focus our app on health and wellness because Highmark has a long-standing commitment to helping our members ‘have a greater hand in their health,’” Childs says.

Other carriers are opting to blend entertainment with education when crafting mobile apps. Springfield, Mass.-based MassMutual has a mobile app called Save! The Game, which imparts the value of saving money to players as they “run, jump and dodge your way through a fantastic world, collecting all the virtual money you can find before time runs out.”