The Keen Way

Many of us have experienced the difficulties of navigating insurance for ourselves or a loved one. Our CEO, Scott Matthews, had a similar challenging experience, and it is part of what motivates him to bring Keen to consumers across the country. Scott's story is one of many that inspire our goal of making Medicare and retirement insurance easy, and advocating for seniors, retirees, and loved ones all across America to get the most out of their benefits

Scott and his mom

The Problem

From my experience speaking to my own parents, today’s world of Medicare can be difficult to navigate. You are inundated with endless and unwanted TV ads, mail, and possibly even phone calls from people trying to sell you one of the many Medicare products on the market. It's hard to know who to trust. Also, the American dream is based on having enough resources to retire and live your best life in your golden years. However, as you age and you get sick, disabled, or visit the hospital, the costs can be crippling. Thankfully, insurance can help. Unfortunately, insurance products can be complicated and many seniors and Medicare beneficiaries don't know where to start. All too often they don't get the coverage they need or spend too much on coverage because they don’t know where to turn for unbiased expert help. In addition, the traditional incentives of insurance commissions are not always aligned with the consumer's best interest.

The Information Disconnect and Activation Gap

On the one hand, health insurance companies invest millions of dollars in improving benefits each for their members to improve outcomes, but that consumers may not know exist or how to use. Competition causes plans to change each year, which makes shopping and speaking with an advisor to help you unlock benefits (like healthy food, transportation, gym, over-the-counter allowances) that much more important.

By the Numbers

Some statistics in particular stand out and remind us each day how important this work is:

Healthcare is the 2nd highest expense category for Seniors (after housing)
The majority of seniors do not have sufficient income to meet their basic needs
Over 1 in 3 adults 65 and older are concerned they won't be able to pay for needed healthcare services in the next year
According to the Kaiser Family Foundation, 71% of Medicare beneficiaries fail to compare plans each year, possibly missing out on tremendous benefits

The Keen Way

The response to all of this is what we call “Keen Way”. Our advisors are independent/offer multiple carriers, are full time employees who do not make commissions, and are able to support you year-round, and for life. With this approach, Keen on average saves our members approximately $400 per year, whether in cost savings or unlocking additional benefits. That's why we started Keen and are excited to shape the future and be their voice.
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We couldn't do this without our amazing team and our members - my favorite part of this work are our Member Moments, which inspire us each day to help as many people as we can.