In this episode of Listening In (With Permission), Ryan Olmstead sits down with Mike Hanlon, founder and CEO of Abett, to unpack some of the boldest ideas in health benefits management—and why they might not be so radical after all.
Ryan Olmstead, MPH
Hello and thanks for viewing my portfolio!
With 20 years of experience in healthcare benefits, I have provided strategic guidance to employers, ranging from hands-on health and welfare benefits consulting to mission-oriented marketplace education and advocacy. At Catalyst for Payment Reform, I strategized and delivered membership programming to 30+ of the country’s most innovative purchasers, published 80+ pieces of thought leadership to educate employers and the broader marketplace on value-based purchasing strategies, managed a large funder grant and was instrumental in its $2.5M renewal, and generated $300K-$400K annual recurring revenue from memberships and other products and services. At Mercer, I facilitated complex healthcare procurements and consulting engagements for Fortune 500 employers representing up to $600M+ in annual benefits spend.
I bring expertise in several areas, including strategic account management/customer success, consultant relations, business development/revenue growth, benefits/healthcare innovation, and grant administration. My commitment to advancing healthcare purchasing innovation is evident in my published works and leadership roles across diverse teams. This site links to my writings, podcast interviews, original research, tools, and events I’ve hosted over the last several years.
- blog (16)
- case study (5)
- podcast (14)
- publications (8)
- research (5)
- tools (12)
- webinars (17)
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Summarizes the price crisis and employer opportunities for policy advocacy.
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Kendra Gipson, Director, Vendor Services & Contracts for the State of Tennessee, speaks with Ryan Olmstead to discuss key healthcare reforms in Tennessee, particularly around pharmacy benefit managers (PBM) and prescription drug policies.
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Ryan sits down with Misha Sharp, the Assistant Director of Policy at the 32BJ Health Fund, to explore the Fund’s approaches to tackling health care costs. The 32BJ Health Fund is a large, self-insured union health plan at the forefront of addressing rising hospital prices.
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Ryan calls Glen Tullman, CEO of Transcarent, to discuss the use of generative AI in addressing healthcare accessibility and affordability. Glen describes the concept of “wayfinding”, which integrates benefits navigation, clinical guidance, and care delivery into a seamless user experience.
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In this episode, Ryan sits down with Paul Grady, Principal at Alera Group to discuss the critical role of purchaser activation in mitigating rising costs in healthcare and improving outcomes.
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Tune into our latest episode of Listening In (With Permission) as Ashok Subramanian, CEO and founder of Centivo, and Ryan Olmstead dive deep into the critical issues of healthcare affordability.
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In this episode of Listening In (With Permission), Ryan calls Chris Chan, Chief Value Officer of finHealth, to discuss the pitfalls many self-insured employers face related to their claims review.
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CPR’s Health Plan Renewal Questionnaire addresses emerging and compelling issues that keep health care purchasers up at night. New issues of focus in CPR’s 2024 renewal questionnaire are price inflation, policy advocacy, plan fiduciary responsibilities, and GLP-1 coverage.
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In this episode of Listening In (With Permission) Dr. Matthew Resnick, Chief Medical Officer at Embold Health, discusses with Ryan the evolution of quality measurement and improvement in healthcare, emphasizing the importance of aligning care with evidence-based guidelines.
Ryan Olmstead, MPH 