Health Insurers Struggle with Digital Experience, J.D. Power Study Reveals

The J.D. Power 2025 U.S. Healthcare Digital Experience Study has revealed that health insurance members are increasingly relying on digital channels for communication, but these experiences consistently fall short of expectations set by other industries.

Now in its second year, the study measures satisfaction across five factors: visual appeal, navigation, information/content, speed, and telehealth. Based on evaluations from 6,259 members of the 15 largest Medicare Advantage and commercial health plans in the U.S., the research was conducted from August to December 2024.

The study found that satisfaction with health plan mobile apps significantly trails other industries. Commercial member health plans scored an average of 653 on a 1,000-point scale, while Medicare Advantage plans averaged just 597. By comparison, full-service wealth management companies achieved 794, property and casualty insurers reached 700, and automotive finance companies scored 672.

The research demonstrates that digital experience strongly correlates with overall satisfaction and renewal intentions. For commercial member health plans with satisfaction scores of 801 or higher, 58% of members reported a much more positive impression of their employer. Among Medicare Advantage plans with similar scores, 85% of members indicated they "definitely will" renew – more than double the loyalty rate for those with scores of 500 or less.

Ease of use emerged as the most crucial factor, with the ability to easily find needed information increasing overall satisfaction by 83 points. However, health plans failed to provide this level of digital experience 39% of the time.

Despite these challenges, mobile app usage is growing, with 37% of commercial health plan members using their insurer's app in 2025, up from 31% in 2024. Overall satisfaction was highest among mobile app users compared to website or phone users, though poor app experiences significantly decreased the likelihood of future use.

"So many daily interactions with service providers are successfully managed digitally, resulting in continually higher customer expectations for a world-class digital experience," said Eric McCready, director of digital solutions at J.D. Power. "However, health insurance providers have a lot of work to do to close the gap to other industries. The most important factors driving member satisfaction with mobile apps and websites include making it easy to find the information they need; providing clear explanations of deductibles and out-of-pocket spending; and offering intuitive navigational elements. Many plans are simply not delivering on those basics."

In the rankings, Cigna Healthcare leads commercial member health plans with a score of 683, followed by Kaiser Foundation Health Plan (680) and Centene (664). For Medicare Advantage plans, UPMC Health Plan ranked highest at 687, with UnitedHealthcare (650) and Cigna Healthcare (644) completing the top three.