Inside Abacus — Why We Built It and What It Changes for Health Plans

Insuring Growth explores the biggest challenges and opportunities facing health insurance leaders, focusing on what executives need to know now.

In our latest episode of Insuring Growth, I sat down with Kyle Mitchell, our VP of Product, to talk about one thing at the center of every plan’s growth challenges: distribution.

For years, plans have invested heavily in claims, billing, and compliance systems. Meanwhile, the part of the business that drives revenue—agent onboarding, broker management, and commissions has been left to spreadsheets, static portals, and siloed workflows.

That disconnect is exactly why we built Abacus, the Growth Engine for health plan distribution.

This conversation takes you inside the product thinking, real-world problems we’re solving, and how Abacus reshapes the way plans drive profitable growth.

Here’s what we covered.

Why Distribution Is the New Growth Frontier

Kyle and I opened with a reality every health plan knows well:

Sales, Operations, and Finance all rely on different systems, none of which fully align with how distribution works.

The result is predictable:

• Duplicate records
• Manual uploads
• Compliance risk from missing documentation
• Delayed commissions
• Agents who get frustrated and go elsewhere

In the episode, we break down why the industry ended up here and why solving distribution is not optional for plans targeting sustainable growth over the next decade.

The Problems Abacus Was Designed to Solve

Kyle shared a “boots-on-the-ground” view from product sessions with plans across the country. Across markets and sizes, the same themes came up:

1. Agent onboarding is slow and inconsistent.
   Static portals can’t handle carrier or health plan-specific hierarchies, contract variations, or multiple product lines.
2. CRMs weren’t built for distribution.
   They’re great for leads, but not for managing agents, downlines, certifications, contracting, or commission changes.
3. Commissions are too manual and too risky.
   Spreadsheets, homegrown calculators, and overnight processes create errors that damage broker relationships.
4. Compliance becomes reactive instead of automated.
   Without a shared source of truth, small misses multiply into audit-ready issues.

This is where Abacus changes things.

What Makes Abacus Different

We walked through the design principles behind Abacus.

Abacus gives plans:

A single source of truth for agents and brokers

Onboarding, contracting, licenses, certifications, appointments, and hierarchies all live in one connected record.

Automated, auditable workflows

No more tracking down emails or relying on shared drives. Abacus builds compliance into the process.

Accurate, transparent commissions

Calculations, adjustments, disputes, and reporting all run in one engine, so Finance can close faster and brokers know exactly what they’re getting paid.

A modern agent experience

Agents get real-time status, no-handoff contracting, and the visibility they expect from modern platforms.

A system finally built for growth

Distribution stops being the bottleneck and becomes the lever.

Why We Built Abacus Now

The timing matters.

Plans are facing:

• Tighter CMS requirements
• More products across more markets
• Increasing broker competition
• Higher expectations from agents
• Pressure to grow, not just operate

Kyle and I talked about why this moment—the shift toward digital distribution—is the right time for a platform that’s purpose-built for health plans.

Abacus isn’t just a software rollout. It’s an infrastructure upgrade for the part of the business that drives revenue.

What This Means for Health Plan Leaders

If you’re in Sales, Operations, Compliance, or Finance, the episode gives you a clear view of:

• What’s holding distribution back today
• What “connected workflows” look like in practice
• How plans are using Abacus to reduce friction and drive profitable growth
• Why modernizing distribution should be part of 2025 planning conversations

It’s 30 minutes of honest conversation about what’s broken and what’s finally possible.

Listen to the Episode

👉 Listen to the full Abacus episode here.

If you’re exploring how to modernize distribution, improve agent experience, or retire manual processes, this episode gives you a roadmap and a look at the technology built for exactly this moment.