With healthcare costs on the rise, more small and midsize employers are choosing self-funded insurance plans. To offset the risk of these plans, employers often purchase high-deductible stop-loss policies to protect against the risk of unexpected catastrophic claims. In the past, it has been difficult for small companies to self-insure, since it could be challenging for them to obtain the claims data necessary to purchase stop-loss insurance, Gradient AI said.

In response to increased client requests, MRM is seeking to assist more small businesses with self-funded insurance. This led the company to expand its underwriting and pricing capabilities specifically to serve the small business market. MRM chose Gradient AI’s SAIL product based on its analytics capabilities and its breadth and depth of medical, lab and prescription data.

“With the increasing cost of healthcare, we are finding that self-funded plans with stop-loss insurance have become very popular with smaller groups,” said Chris Rice, president of MRM. “Self-funded plans offer greater flexibility, control, and cost-saving opportunities. However, until now we were not able to offer these plans to smaller businesses due to the lack of claims history available. Now, with access to robust data and analytics that Gradient AI’s SAIL solution provides, we can quote business that was simply not possible before.”

Using Gradient AI’s dataset and machine-learning capabilities, MRM can evaluate group health risk at a deeper level, creating customized and cost-effective self-insured programs. By using SAIL’s medical underwriting solution, the company is able to obtain a complete and accurate picture of the health profile of a particular group.

“MRM’s ability to now offer stop-loss insurance to small businesses has expanded its market while enabling these businesses and their employees and families to enjoy better, more cost-effective healthcare coverage,” said Stan Smith, founder and CEO of Gradient AI. “We are delighted to be part of the solution that makes all of this possible. As MRM continues to grow, we are committed to supporting their mission of offering stop-loss coverage at any deductible level, over any network, and in any zip code nationwide.”

MRM is the latest company to partner with Gradient AI on stop-loss insurance. In October, Skyward Specialty Insurance Group chose Gradient AI to power its stop-loss solution, SkyVantage.