Health care touches nearly every aspect of our lives, yet navigating the system can still feel fragmented, confusing, and unnecessarily difficult. At a time when consumers can manage nearly everything from a phone or laptop, health care often requires people to piece together information, processes, and services on their own.

As chief operating officer of Point32Health, Katie Catlender is focused on helping change that. By bringing together technology, operations, data, and provider partnerships, she believes health care can become simpler, more connected, and more responsive to the needs of members and providers alike.

We spoke with Catlender about reducing complexity, improving experiences, and building the next generation of health care:

Q: Throughout your career, you’ve worked across strategy, transformation, customer experience, and operations. What has that taught you about creating meaningful change in health care?

Katie Catlender: One thing I’ve learned is that the biggest challenges in health care don’t fit neatly into a single function or department. They often span people, processes, technology, and experience, which means solving them requires a broader perspective.

Throughout my career, I’ve been drawn to helping organizations grow, transform, and navigate change. What consistently stands out is how much progress organizations can make when strategy, technology, operations, and people are aligned.

For me, it’s about making health care easier. Whether we’re redesigning a process, investing in technology, or improving how teams work together, every change should help create experiences that are more connected, more effective, and ultimately better for the customers and members we serve.

Q: What are the biggest challenges health plans are facing today?

KC: Health plans are operating at the intersection of rising consumer expectations, increasing health care costs, evolving regulations, and rapid technological change.

Members expect the same simplicity and personalization they experience in other parts of their lives, while providers are looking for administrative processes that are easier and less burdensome. At the same time, affordability remains a critical concern. Organizations are being asked to improve experiences, invest in innovation, and manage costs simultaneously.

The challenge isn’t simply doing things faster; it’s fundamentally rethinking how work gets done. That means finding ways to reduce waste, eliminate unnecessary complexity, and create experiences that work better for members, providers, and employers alike.

The organizations that succeed will be the ones that can bring those priorities together. In an increasingly complex health care environment, the ability to connect technology, data, operations, service, and experience is becoming a true competitive advantage. It’s what allows us to turn insights into action, simplify the experience, and create more value for the people we serve.

Q: People often feel like they’re navigating care on their own. What should a better experience look like?

KC: Health care should feel less like a maze and more like a guided journey.

Members shouldn’t have to understand the complexity of the health care system to access care, understand their benefits, or make informed decisions. Better support means anticipating needs, providing personalized guidance, and making it easier to connect people with the right care at the right time. 

The more we can remove friction and uncertainty, the more confidence people have in their health care experience. And much of that work happens behind the scenes. It’s not just about a member’s interaction with their health plan. It’s also about how health plans, providers, pharmacies, brokers, employers, and regulators work together to create a more cohesive experience.

Members don’t think about departments, systems, or organizational boundaries, and they shouldn’t have to. That’s why keeping members at the center of every decision we make is so important. Whether we’re redesigning a process, improving a service or experience, or investing in new technology, we start by asking how it will make things easier for the people we serve. The more connected and coordinated the experience becomes, the less time people spend navigating the system and the more time they can focus on their health.

Q: Where do you see the greatest opportunities to simplify the experience for members and providers?

KC: One of the greatest opportunities is creating a more connected experience across the health care journey. Too often, information is fragmented and interactions happen in silos — but people don’t experience health care that way. 

That’s why we’re focused on creating a more seamless experience for both members and providers. This year, we launched an enhanced “Find Care” experience with improved search capabilities, location-based results, and cost information. We also expanded digital onboarding for Medicare and Duals (those who are dually eligible for Medicare and Medicaid) enrollment to help simplify the first interaction members have with us.

Looking ahead, we’re continuing to build toward a more unified digital experience. That includes investing in next-generation portal capabilities to make it easier for members and providers to access information, navigate care, and get answers more quickly. The goal isn’t simply to digitize existing processes but to create a more connected experience that reduces friction and makes health care easier to navigate for everyone involved.

Technology plays an important role in that effort, but it’s most effective when it works alongside meaningful human support. The best experiences combine digital tools that simplify the process with people who can provide guidance, answer questions, and help members and providers navigate important decisions when they need it most.

Q: How are provider expectations evolving, and how can health plans be better partners?

KC: While technology and simplification are important, providers today are facing broader challenges that put them under tremendous pressure.  

They’re managing workforce shortages, rising costs, increasing complexity, and growing administrative demands. One message we hear consistently is that providers want health plans to be easier to do business with. They want greater transparency, more consistency, and simpler ways to access the information they need.

That’s why we view provider partnerships as a critical part of improving the overall health care experience. Every time we reduce friction, streamline a process, or make it easier to resolve an issue, we’re helping providers spend more time focused on patient care and less time navigating administrative tasks. Through initiatives like our provider portal pilot and digital front door, we are working to become a more predictable, transparent, and collaborative partner. 

The strongest partnerships are built on trust, transparency, and shared goals. When health plans and providers work together to improve affordability, quality, and the overall experience, everyone benefits, especially the members and patients we collectively serve.

Q: Many think of affordability only in terms of the cost of care. What role can operational improvements play in making health care more affordable?

KC: Affordability isn’t just about the price of care. It’s also about reducing waste, eliminating unnecessary complexity, and operating more efficiently — that is what we are working on every day. 

Health care still relies on too many fragmented systems, manual processes, and administrative tasks that create effort without adding value. Every time we remove a step, reduce duplication, automate a process, or make an experience more intuitive, we create efficiencies that benefit members, providers, and employers.

As a nonprofit organization, we’re able to take a long-term view of how we deliver value. Every efficiency we create and every administrative dollar we save offers opportunities to improve service, strengthen experiences, and deliver greater value for the people we serve. That allows us to balance innovation and modernization with our commitment to members and communities.

The best operational improvements do more than lower costs. They also improve quality, consistency, speed, and experience. That’s why I view operational excellence and affordability as closely connected. When we simplify how health care works, we make it easier for people to access care and help create a more sustainable system overall.

Q: As you look ahead, what do you think will define the next generation of health care?

KC: I think the next generation of health care will be defined by how effectively we connect experiences that have historically been fragmented.

We’re already seeing many of the building blocks come together: digital front doors for members and providers, stronger data and interoperability foundations, AI moving from pilots to scaled business value, and deeper provider partnerships focused on affordability and outcomes.

What excites me most is the opportunity to bring all those pieces together. Technology alone won’t transform health care. The real opportunity comes from combining digital innovation, data-driven insights, stronger provider collaboration, and a relentless focus on the member experience.

By bringing those capabilities together, we’re able to redefine what a modern health plan can be and create a health care experience that is simpler, more affordable, and more connected than it is today.

Point32Health, the parent company of Harvard Pilgrim Health Care and Tufts Health Plan, is a leading nonprofit health and well-being organization dedicated to delivering high-quality, affordable health care. Serving nearly 2 million members, our purpose is to guide and empower healthier lives.