Is ICHRA the Future of Employer Health Benefits?
Wednesday, September 30
3:45 PM - 4:45 PM (ET)
With rising healthcare costs and changing workforce expectations, employers are looking beyond the traditional one-size-fits-all group health plan. ICHRA is gaining momentum as a flexible alternative that gives employees more control over their healthcare choices while helping employers better manage costs. This breakout session will unpack what ICHRA really is, how it works in practice, and why it’s becoming one of the fastest-growing conversations in employee benefits. We’ll explore market trends, employer use cases, implementation strategies, and what organizations should consider before making the shift. Attendees will also hear perspectives from industry leaders across brokerage, marketplace innovation, and healthcare strategy, offering real-world insights into employer adoption trends, implementation challenges, employee experience, and the evolving future of ICHRA. Whether you’re new to ICHRA or already exploring it, this session will provide practical insights you can take back to your organization.
Caitlin Walsdorf
Partner
HealthScape Advisors
Caitlin serves as a co-leader of HealthScape Advisors’ Ancillary Center of Excellence, where she brings nearly 15 years of consulting and industry experience to her work with payors and provider organizations across Commercial, Medicare, Medicaid, and Federal lines of business. Her clients include stand-alone ancillary carriers, national and regional health plans, and multi-line insurers seeking to expand, optimize, or diversify their ancillary offerings. Caitlin has deep expertise in supporting plans through a broad range of financial and operational initiatives. Her work spans strategic partnerships between health plans and ancillary carriers, new market entry and diversification strategies, sales and product innovation, provider network and cost of care analytics, operational assessments and improvements, and transaction advisory services. She is also responsible for overseeing the development and management of several proprietary, ancillary-specific business intelligence tools in collaboration with HealthScape’s Analytics & Technology Team—including the Commercial Dental Insights Dashboard, the Medicare Advantage Dental Tool, and the Medicare Advantage Vision Tool. A recognized thought leader in the ancillary benefits space, Caitlin regularly contributes to HealthScape’s insights and publications. Most recently, she co-authored the Pathway to Value survey and white paper in partnership with the National Association of Dental Plans (NADP) and CareQuest Institute, furthering the industry’s understanding of value-based transformation in ancillary markets.
Lauren (Kelly) Sweda
Chief Growth Officer
Nexben
Lauren (Kelly) Sweda is Chief Growth Officer at Nexben, where she leads strategic growth initiatives focused on helping employers implement innovative, sustainable healthcare and benefits solutions. With more than 15 years of experience in the health and benefits industry, she has worked closely with providers, brokers, carriers, and employers to develop strategies that improve access, affordability, and consumer choice. At Nexben, Lauren helps organizations address the growing challenge of healthcare costs through defined contribution strategies and customizable benefits solutions that empower employees to make informed decisions based on their individual needs and budgets. Prior to joining Nexben, Lauren served as Chief Growth Officer for Magellan Healthcare's Employer Division and as Director of Strategic Markets for Careington International. Throughout her career, she has been recognized for building high-performing teams, fostering collaborative partnerships, and driving growth through innovation and strategic leadership. Lauren is passionate about advancing benefits solutions that create value for employers while improving the healthcare experience for employees and their families.
James Stines
President & Managing Partner
HAUSER
James Stines brings a rare vantage point to the ICHRA conversation — having shaped employer health strategy from both the carrier and advisor side of the table. As President and Co-Managing Partner at HAUSER, James works with private equity firms and their portfolio companies to build benefits strategies that go beyond cost containment — treating health benefits as a lever for enterprise value. His work spans the full investment lifecycle, helping leadership teams make smarter decisions on benefits design, including knowing when flexible, individual-driven models like ICHRA are the right fit for a dynamic or growing workforce. Before joining HAUSER, James served as Corporate Vice President of Sales at Humana, where he led national strategy for consumer-directed health plans during a pivotal era in employer benefits — when HDHPs and HSAs were redefining how employers and employees shared financial responsibility. A central part of that work was guiding employers through the transition from fully-insured to self-funded arrangements, helping organizations move from predictable premiums to models that offered greater transparency, control, and long-term cost leverage. That evolution — from group-sponsored plans toward increasingly individualized funding structures — is the same continuum that ICHRA now extends. James watched that shift unfold from the inside, and today advises employers on where ICHRA fits within it. James is a practical voice in this space: focused less on whether ICHRA is the future and more on whether it's the right move for a specific organization — and how to get it right when it is.
Leesa Smith (Moderator)
Assistant Vice President of Business Development
Careington International
Leesa Smith is Assistant Vice President of Business Development at Careington International Corporation, where she focuses on building and expanding strategic partnerships with third-party administrators, carriers, benefits brokers, DSOs, affinity groups, and consultants. With more than 23 years of experience in the dental and healthcare benefits industry, she helps organizations develop flexible, non-insured, hybrid, and self-funded solutions that improve access, control costs, and meet the evolving needs of employers and consumers. Leesa brings extensive expertise in network development, provider and DSO relations, and benefit economics. Throughout her career, she has led national provider recruitment and contracting initiatives, supported the international expansion of Munroe Sutton, contributed to the development of the DialCare provider network, and helped guide the Launch Loyalty brand through its successful acquisition in 2025. A recognized industry leader and relationship builder, Leesa serves on the Women in DSO Advisory Board and chairs its Wellness Committee. She is also an active volunteer with the National Association of Dental Plans (NADP), serving on the Education Commission and previously participating in the Government Relations and Membership WorkGroups. She was a finalist for the 2025 Women in DSO Leadership in Business Award, a 2025 NADP Board nominee finalist, and was named to the 2025 Denobi Awards shortlist. Leesa is a frequent moderator and speaker at industry conferences, where she brings together thought leaders to discuss emerging trends, innovation, and the future of dental benefits and patient access.
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