eHealth Inc (EHTH) 2023 Q2 法說會逐字稿

Good day, ladies and gentlemen, and welcome to eHealth, Inc.'s Q2 2023 Earnings Conference call. (Operator Instructions)

女士們、先生們，美好的一天，歡迎參加 eHealth, Inc. 的 2023 年第二季度收益電話會議。 （操作員說明）

It is now my pleasure to turn the floor over to Eli Newbrun-Mintz, Senior Investor Relations Manager. Please go ahead.

現在我很高興將發言權交給高級投資者關係經理 Eli Newbrun-Mintz。請繼續。

Good morning, and thank you all for joining us today. On the call this morning, Francis Soistman, eHealth's Chief Executive Officer; and John Stelben, Chief Financial Officer, will discuss our second quarter 2023 financial results. Following these prepared remarks, we will open up the line for a Q&A session with industry analysts. As a reminder, this call is being recorded and webcast from the Investor Relations section of our website. A replay of the call will be available on our website later today. .

早上好，感謝大家今天加入我們。 eHealth 首席執行官弗朗西斯·索伊斯特曼 (Francis Soistman) 在今天上午的電話會議上表示：首席財務官 John Stelben 將討論我們 2023 年第二季度的財務業績。在這些準備好的發言之後，我們將開通與行業分析師的問答環節。謹此提醒，本次電話會議正在我們網站的投資者關係部分進行錄音和網絡直播。今天晚些時候，我們的網站上將提供電話會議的重播。 。

Today's press release are historical financial news releases and our filings with the SEC are also available on our Investor Relations site. We will be making forward-looking statements on this call about certain matters that are based upon management's current beliefs and expectations relating to future events impacting the company and our future financial operating performance.

今天的新聞稿是歷史性的金融新聞，我們向 SEC 提交的文件也可以在我們的投資者關係網站上找到。我們將在本次電話會議上就某些事項做出前瞻性聲明，這些聲明基於管理層對影響公司和我們未來財務運營業績的未來事件的當前信念和預期。

Forward-looking statements on this call represent eHealth's views as of today, and actual results could differ materially. We undertake no obligation to publicly address or update any forward-looking statements and future filings or communications regarding our business or results. The forward-looking statements we will be making during this call are subject to a number of uncertainties and risks, including, but not limited to, those described in today's press release and in our most recent annual report on Form 10-K in our subsequent filings with the SEC.

本次電話會議的前瞻性陳述代表 eHealth 截至目前的觀點，實際結果可能存在重大差異。我們沒有義務公開發表或更新有關我們業務或業績的任何前瞻性陳述以及未來的文件或通訊。我們將在本次電話會議中做出的前瞻性陳述受到許多不確定性和風險的影響，包括但不限於今天的新聞稿以及我們後續的10-K 表格中最新年度報告中描述的不確定性和風險。向 SEC 提交的文件。

We will also be discussing certain non-GAAP financial measures on this call. Management's definitions of these non-GAAP measures and reconciliations to the most directly comparable GAAP financial measures are included in today's press release.

我們還將在本次電話會議上討論某些非公認會計準則財務指標。管理層對這些非公認會計準則衡量標準的定義以及與最直接可比的公認會計準則財務衡量標準的調節均包含在今天的新聞稿中。

With that, I'll turn the call over to Francis Soistman.

這樣，我會將電話轉給弗朗西斯·索伊斯特曼。

Thank you, Eli, and thank you all for joining us this morning for eHealth's Second Quarter 2023 Earnings Call. eHealth delivered strong Q2 results with revenue and profitability ahead of our expectations driven in part by positive tail revenue, which reflects favorable commissions and persistency trends in our book of business. We are well on track in our preparations for the annual enrollment period, and I'm confident in eHealth's ability to execute against our goal of returning to Medicare enrollment growth on a significantly improved operational and cost foundation in the fourth quarter.

謝謝 Eli，也感謝大家今天早上參加 eHealth 的 2023 年第二季度財報電話會議。 eHealth 在第二季度取得了強勁的業績，收入和盈利能力超出了我們的預期，部分原因是正尾部收入，這反映了我們業務中有利的佣金和持續趨勢。我們在年度參保期的準備工作中進展順利，我對 eHealth 有能力實現我們的目標充滿信心，即在第四季度顯著改善的運營和成本基礎上恢復醫療保險參保增長。

Based on our strong performance year-to-date, we are raising our 2023 annual guidance ranges for total revenue, GAAP earnings and adjusted EBITDA. The Medicare market represents an attractive growth opportunity for eHealth. As we continue to successfully execute on our transformation plan, we believe we are in a strong position to effectively grow our share of the Medicare opportunity at favorable economics. Importantly, we believe that distinguishing eHealth as a trusted adviser for beneficiaries and as a reliable source of high-quality enrollment volume for carriers is key to our success over the coming quarters and years.

基於我們今年迄今為止的強勁表現，我們提高了 2023 年總收入、GAAP 收益和調整後 EBITDA 的年度指導範圍。醫療保險市場對於電子醫療來說是一個有吸引力的增長機會。隨著我們繼續成功執行我們的轉型計劃，我們相信我們處於有利地位，可以在有利的經濟條件下有效增加我們在醫療保險機會中的份額。重要的是，我們相信，將 eHealth 區分為受益人值得信賴的顧問和運營商高質量註冊量的可靠來源，是我們在未來幾個季度和幾年取得成功的關鍵。

Carriers continue to offer a significant choice of Medicare Advantage plans with a wide range of coverage features, premium points and supplemental benefits. Recent public commentary from major carriers reinforces their ongoing commitment to the Medicare Advantage business and delivering superior value and health outcomes to seniors.

承運人繼續提供 Medicare Advantage 計劃的重要選擇，具有廣泛的承保功能、保費積分和補充福利。主要運營商最近的公開評論強化了他們對 Medicare Advantage 業務以及為老年人提供卓越價值和健康成果的持續承諾。

We believe that recent developments, including changes in star ratings, risk adjustment model and CMS reimbursement rates may lead to shifts in the carriers' competitive landscape during the upcoming AEP and create additional need for trusted advisers like eHealth to help beneficiaries understand the implications, the plan changes and evaluate their coverage options.

我們認為，最近的發展，包括星級評定、風險調整模型和CMS 報銷率的變化，可能會導致運營商在即將到來的AEP 期間競爭格局發生變化，並產生對eHealth 等值得信賴的顧問的額外需求，以幫助受益人了解其影響、計劃變更並評估其承保選項。

eHealth is actively engaged in planning sessions with our carrier partners to support them in this AEP with both customer acquisition and retention. We believe that similar to last year, changes to plan offerings and benefit structure will differ by carrier and geography, underscoring the importance of our broad carrier selection and local market focus.

eHealth 積極參與與我們的運營商合作夥伴的規劃會議，以在本 AEP 中為他們提供客戶獲取和保留方面的支持。我們認為，與去年類似，計劃產品和福利結構的變化將因運營商和地理位置的不同而有所不同，這凸顯了我們廣泛的運營商選擇和本地市場關注的重要性。

Our carrier and channel-agnostic enrollment platform uniquely serves the diverse preferences and needs of beneficiaries as they engage in the critically important process of finding the optimal coverage. This unique and proprietary platform is critical to our ability to deliver on our mission to expertly guide consumers for their health insurance options when, where and how they prefer. If our platform deems that a beneficiary is already in the right plan, when they contact us, we see it equally critical to keep that person enrolled in their coverage and in still confident that it offers the best value for their needs.

我們與運營商和渠道無關的註冊平台獨特地滿足受益人的不同偏好和需求，因為他們參與了尋找最佳覆蓋範圍的至關重要的過程。這個獨特的專有平台對於我們履行我們的使命至關重要，即專業指導消費者在他們喜歡的時間、地點和方式選擇健康保險。如果我們的平台認為受益人已經加入了正確的計劃，當他們聯繫我們時，我們認為讓該人加入他們的保險範圍並仍然相信它可以為他們的需求提供最佳價值同樣重要。

As part of our mission-driven strategy, we're also investing to expand our Medicare supplement expertise as this product can deliver significant value to select geographic and socioeconomic segment of the Medicare-eligible population. Our mission-driven value proposition and beneficiary pledge creates a foundation for our collaborative relationships for our carrier partners. The tele brokers channel is an important element of carriers broader distribution strategy in the direct-to-consumer markets, including MA, MedSupp and IFP. However, we believe that carriers will be increasingly consolidating their broker relationships, narrowing them down to best-in-class channel partners that are multiple lined on quality standards and deliver superior customer experience.

作為我們使命驅動戰略的一部分，我們還投資擴大我們的醫療保險補充專業知識，因為該產品可以為符合醫療保險資格的特定地理和社會經濟群體帶來巨大價值。我們以使命為導向的價值主張和受益者承諾為我們與運營商合作夥伴的合作關係奠定了基礎。電話經紀人渠道是運營商在直接面向消費者市場（包括 MA、MedSupp 和 IFP）中更廣泛分銷策略的重要組成部分。然而，我們相信運營商將越來越多地鞏固他們的經紀人關係，將其範圍縮小到一流的渠道合作夥伴，這些合作夥伴在質量標准上有多重標準，並提供卓越的客戶體驗。

eHealth continues to receive positive feedback from carriers with respect to the significant progress we've achieved over the past 2 years in driving our enrollment quality and CTM scores. Second quarter results show another material improvement in CTM performance year-over-year. And recently, 1 of our 3 largest carriers awarded eHealth, a quality award for having the lowest CTMs within their broker channel.

eHealth 繼續收到運營商的積極反饋，認為我們過去 2 年在提高註冊質量和 CTM 分數方面取得了重大進展。第二季度業績顯示，CTM 業績同比再次出現實質性改善。最近，我們三大運營商之一榮獲 eHealth 質量獎，表彰其經紀商渠道中 CTM 最低的獎項。

We also continue to expand our carrier services, adding new beneficiary engagement services, ancillary products and supporting our carrier direct channel for BPO and overflow arrangements. We were excited to showcase the strength of our carrier relations through Aetna's participation in our Investor and Analyst Day in May of this year.

我們還繼續擴展我們的承運人服務，增加新的受益人參與服務、輔助產品，並支持我們的承運人直接渠道進行 BPO 和溢出安排。我們很高興通過 Aetna 參加今年 5 月的投資者和分析師日來展示我們與運營商關係的實力。

eHealth is also committed to maintaining our strong record of regulatory compliance. During the last quarter's earnings call and at Investor Day, we discussed the new rules that CMS had announced earlier this year related to marketing materials and sales practices for Medicare products. We shared that we believe our company was prepared to effectively navigate the new rules and our confidence has only increased since our previous comments. eHealth continued its support of CMS and their goal of improving transparency and customer experience is beneficiary stop for Medicare plan. We believe that the rules represent a step towards further rationalization within the demand generation portion of our industry.

eHealth 還致力於保持我們良好的監管合規記錄。在上個季度的財報電話會議和投資者日上，我們討論了 CMS 今年早些時候宣布的有關 Medicare 產品營銷材料和銷售做法的新規則。我們表示，我們相信我們的公司已準備好有效地應對新規則，並且自我們之前的評論以來，我們的信心只增不減。 eHealth 繼續支持 CMS，其提高透明度和客戶體驗的目標是 Medicare 計劃的受益人。我們相信，這些規則代表了我們行業的需求生成部分朝著進一步合理化邁出的一步。

Last AEP marked an inflection point in our sector as key players began to shift towards a more rational approach to marketing spend and a greater emphasis on profitability. This trend is carried into 2023 and has combined with an ongoing reduction in tele broker capacity due to downsizing and exits by some of our competitors. We expect for this trend to continue, especially with smaller and funding constrained players and believe this creates opportunity for eHealth to capture our larger share total customer calls and online visits over time, and solidify our position as a gold standard in health insurance distribution.

上一次 AEP 標誌著我們行業的一個轉折點，因為主要參與者開始轉向更理性的營銷支出方式並更加重視盈利能力。這一趨勢將持續到 2023 年，並且由於我們的一些競爭對手的規模縮小和退出，電話經紀商的容量持續減少。我們預計這一趨勢將持續下去，特別是對於規模較小且資金有限的參與者，並相信這將為eHealth 創造機會，隨著時間的推移，我們將獲得更大的客戶呼叫和在線訪問總數份額，並鞏固我們作為健康保險分銷黃金標準的地位。

Additionally, during the second quarter, CMS announced a moderate increase of just under 2% in maximum broker commission rates. The increase will be implemented for the 2024 plan year and represent the continuation of the favorable commission environment in the MA space. The new rates are in line with our expectations, and are one of the positive drivers of lifetime values within our MA product.

此外，在第二季度，CMS 宣布將經紀商最高佣金率適度提高略低於 2%。此次增加將在 2024 計劃年實施，代表 MA 領域有利的佣金環境的延續。新費率符合我們的預期，並且是我們 MA 產品終身價值的積極推動因素之一。

Moving now to our second quarter financial results. Our enrollment volume, LTVs and cost performance were largely in line with our expectations. The outperformance in the quarter was driven primarily by positive tail or adjustment revenue of $18.7 million, which reflects the favorable commission environment of the past 2 years as well as positive retention dynamics, particularly pertaining to Medicare Advantage members we enrolled during the annual enrollment period in 2020 and '21. The adjusted revenue underscores the high quality and reliability of our commissions receivable balance, cumulative positive adjustment revenue to date amounting to more than $170 million since the ASC 606 was initially implemented in 2018.

現在轉向我們的第二季度財務業績。我們的入學量、生命週期價值和性價比基本符合我們的預期。本季度的優異表現主要是由1,870 萬美元的正尾部或調整收入推動的，這反映了過去2 年有利的佣金環境以及積極的保留動態，特別是與我們在年度註冊期間註冊的Medicare Advantage 會員相關。 2020 年和 '21。調整後的收入凸顯了我們應收佣金餘額的高質量和可靠性，自 2018 年首次實施 ASC 606 以來，迄今為止累計正調整收入已超過 1.7 億美元。

Based on our observation for June, the most recent AEP cohort enrolled in Q4 of last year, continues to perform better in terms of retention compared to the AEP cohort from the prior 2 years. We are pleased with the traction we are seeing in our retention and customer loyalty building initiatives while acknowledging there is still work to be done to improve our retention, and that significant upside remains to improving our persistency and LTVs.

根據我們對 6 月份的觀察，去年第四季度註冊的最新 AEP 隊列在保留率方面繼續表現優於前 2 年的 AEP 隊列。我們對我們在保留和客戶忠誠度建設計劃中所看到的牽引力感到高興，同時承認在提高我們的保留方面仍有工作要做，並且在提高我們的持久性和生命週期價值方面仍然存在顯著的優勢。

Second quarter total revenue was $66.8 million, an increase of 32% year-over-year. This included a 30% decline in our Medicare enrollment volume, offset by increase in MA and PDP, LTVs and as well as tail revenue as described earlier. GAAP net loss and adjusted EBITDA improved substantially on a year-over-year basis also as a result of the tail revenue.

第二季度總收入為 6680 萬美元，同比增長 32%。這包括我們的醫療保險參保人數下降了 30%，但被 MA 和 PDP、LTV 以及尾部收入的增加所抵消（如前所述）。由於尾部收入，公認會計準則淨虧損和調整後 EBITDA 同比大幅改善。

eHealth ended the second quarter with $190 million in cash, cash equivalents and short-term marketable securities. Operating cash outflow for the quarter was $9.4 million, a significant improvement compared to operating cash outflow of $25.8 million in Q2 of 2022, reflecting our continued focus on financial discipline and strong commission collections.

eHealth 第二季度末擁有 1.9 億美元現金、現金等價物和短期有價證券。本季度的運營現金流出為 940 萬美元，與 2022 年第二季度的運營現金流出 2580 萬美元相比顯著改善，反映出我們持續關注財務紀律和強有力的佣金收取。

During the quarter, we made important progress in preparing key operational areas of eHealth for a successful annual enrollment period. This AEP represents an important milestone in our transformation program. After dialing back our member acquisition spend last year to focus on rebuilding our sales and marketing organizations and substantially enhancing our cost structure, we are preparing to return to profitable growth in Q4.

本季度，我們在電子醫療關鍵業務領域的準備工作上取得了重要進展，以確保年度註冊期的成功。該 AEP 代表了我們轉型計劃的一個重要里程碑。在去年縮減會員獲取支出以專注於重建我們的銷售和營銷組織並大幅改善我們的成本結構之後，我們準備在第四季度恢復盈利增長。

Our telesales organization has largely finalized adviser hiring and our comprehensive Medicare and sales mastering training program is now well underway for these incoming advisers. We're also making final preparations for the launch of our first large carrier dedicated deal, which represents a significant expansion from limited overflow services we've provided to the carriers for the past years. We believe this deal validates eHealth's capability in this area and serves as a jumping-off point for other at-scale dedicated carrier arrangements. Several smaller deals have already launched or are in the works ahead of Q4.

我們的電話銷售組織已基本確定了顧問的聘用，我們全面的醫療保險和銷售掌握培訓計劃目前正在為這些即將上任的顧問順利進行。我們還在為推出我們的第一個大型運營商專用交易做最後的準備，這代表著我們在過去幾年向運營商提供的有限溢出服務的基礎上的重大擴展。我們相信，這筆交易驗證了 eHealth 在該領域的能力，並可作為其他大規模專用運營商安排的起點。幾項規模較小的交易已經在第四季度之前啟動或正在進行中。

We are also working to find additional efficiencies in our staffing strategy. As a pilot program this cycle, we are introducing a small number of seasonal eHealth advisers into our call center operations, which we expect to afford us additional flexibility to meet the capacity requirements of peak AEP demand. Within our marketing organization, we are working to implement the branding and demand generation strategies that were outlined at our Investor Day in May. We are preparing to roll out new lead generation channel, and are in the process of finalizing the review and regulatory approval of new marketing messaging plan for launch this AEP.

我們還致力於提高人員配置策略的效率。作為本週期的試點計劃，我們將在我們的呼叫中心運營中引入少量季節性電子健康顧問，我們預計這將為我們提供額外的靈活性，以滿足 AEP 高峰需求的容量要求。在我們的營銷組織內，我們正在努力實施五月份投資者日概述的品牌和需求生成策略。我們正準備推出新的潛在客戶生成渠道，並正在完成對推出此 AEP 的新營銷信息計劃的審查和監管批准。

The new materials are intended to build eHealth's brand recognition as we break out generic redundant messaging that has defined our industry for far too long. The new marketing materials are customized to communicate our differentiated value proposition and are tailored to our key Medicare audiences, including agent due to Medicare Advantage, switchers within Medicare Advantage and local markets. We're also increasingly focused on enhancing our targeted messaging and outreach for retention to individuals that fall under the categorization of dual special needs eligible known as D-SNP, and chronic special needs plan eligible, known as C-SNP.

新材料旨在建立電子醫療的品牌知名度，因為我們打破了長期以來定義我們行業的通用冗餘信息。新的營銷材料經過定制，旨在傳達我們差異化的價值主張，並針對我們的主要 Medicare 受眾（包括 Medicare Advantage 的代理人、Medicare Advantage 內的轉換者和本地市場）量身定制。我們還越來越注重加強有針對性的信息傳遞和外展活動，以保留符合雙重特殊需求資格（稱為 D-SNP）和符合長期特殊需求計劃資格（稱為 C-SNP）類別的個人。

Our online platform is also being updated in close coordination with marketing to deploy personalized landing pages that are aligned with our audience targeting strategy. We have introduced new tools and provide a more seamless shopping and enrollment experience to our customers, including online appointment setting and enhanced mobile site, a streamlined plan, selection flow and expanded educational content.

我們的在線平台也與營銷部門密切配合進行更新，以部署與我們的受眾定位策略相一致的個性化登陸頁面。我們推出了新工具，為客戶提供更加無縫的購物和註冊體驗，包括在線預約設置和增強的移動網站、簡化的計劃、選擇流程和擴展的教育內容。

As I mentioned, we are seeing incremental positive impact from a range of retention initiatives introduced last year and are now moving forward with the next phase of our retention program ahead of the critical annual enrollment period. We believe the retention journey begins with helping beneficiaries find the right plan when they first enrolled and have found it to be a foundational factor in creating lasting enrollment. We supplement this with our ongoing retention plan which is centered around post-enrollment engagement with special focus on members with higher propensity to churn based on our data-driven predictive model and deeper integration of member engagement activities with our customer center, which now has over 450,000 accounts.

正如我所提到的，我們看到去年推出的一系列保留計劃產生了越來越多的積極影響，現在正在關鍵的年度入學期之前推進下一階段的保留計劃。我們相信，保留之旅始於幫助受益人在第一次註冊時找到正確的計劃，並發現它是創造持久註冊的基本因素。我們通過持續的保留計劃來補充這一點，該計劃以註冊後參與為中心，特別關注基於我們的數據驅動的預測模型以及會員參與活動與我們的客戶中心的更深入整合的具有較高流失傾向的會員，客戶中心現在已經超過450,000 個帳戶。

While Q4 disproportionately contributes to annual revenue and earnings, we are increasing our annual guidance ranges for total revenue, GAAP earnings and adjusted EBITDA by the amount of the positive adjustment revenue recognized in the quarter, net of incremental performance bonus that we accrued for in Q2, reflecting an increase in 2023 projections against our original plan. With these changes, we are now expecting to be profitable on an adjusted EBITDA basis at the midpoint of our updated guidance range, an increase from our prior adjusted EBITDA guidance midpoint which was originally negative $5 million.

雖然第四季度對年度收入和利潤的貢獻不成比例，但我們正在根據本季度確認的正調整收入金額（扣除我們在第二季度累積的增量績效獎金）來提高總收入、公認會計原則收益和調整後EBITDA 的年度指導範圍，反映了 2023 年預測相對於我們原計劃的增加。通過這些變化，我們現在預計在更新後的指導範圍中點的調整後 EBITDA 基礎上實現盈利，這比我們之前調整後的 EBITDA 指導中點（最初為負 500 萬美元）有所增加。

This is a testament to the traction of our transformation plan and the strong retention performance we're achieving within our historical cohorts. None of this would be possible, though, without the critical work of eHealth's leadership team and employees. Their engagement and dedication to this company and the goal of achieving sustainable profitable growth is truly inspiring.

這證明了我們轉型計劃的吸引力以及我們在歷史群體中取得的強勁保留表現。然而，如果沒有 eHealth 領導團隊和員工的關鍵工作，這一切都是不可能的。他們對公司的參與和奉獻以及實現可持續盈利增長的目標確實令人鼓舞。

I also would like to provide an update with respect to our relationship with HIG Capital, our convertible preferred stock investor. The relationship between HIG and eHealth is the strongest it's been in my tenure as CEO. Our recent conversations with HIG leadership have garnered new insight into how they view eHealth. More specifically, it's clear that the progress eHealth has achieved on its business transformation, reconstituting its leadership team and positioning itself for longer-term success has resulted in greater confidence with respect to their investment.

我還想提供有關我們與 HIG Capital（我們的可轉換優先股投資者）關係的最新信息。 HIG 和 eHealth 之間的關係是我擔任首席執行官以來最牢固的。我們最近與 HIG 領導層的對話獲得了關於他們如何看待電子醫療的新見解。更具體地說，很明顯，eHealth 在業務轉型、重組領導團隊以及為實現長期成功而定位方面取得的進展，增強了對其投資的信心。

That said, over the past year, we've attempted to engage constructively with HIG on various provisions of the investment agreement and more recently with respect to the minimum asset coverage ratio preferred stock covenant that contractually changes from 2 to 2.5x or 25% effective later this month.

也就是說，在過去的一年裡，我們嘗試與HIG 就投資協議的各項條款進行建設性的接觸，最近還就最低資產覆蓋率優先股契約進行了建設性接觸，該契約按合同規定從2 倍變更為2.5 倍或25% 有效這個月晚些時候。

Our decision to reduce our marketing spend as we embarked on a company-wide transformation program allowed us to drive stronger earnings and cash flow, but also resulted in a temporary decline in our revenue and enrollment growth last year. A decline in enrollment volumes typically translates into lower commissions receivable balance, which is the numerator in the minimum asset coverage ratio. While our operational decisions were encouraged and supported by HIG's representative on eHealth's Board of Directors, they also put us at risk for tripping the preferred stock covenant related to this ratio.

當我們開始全公司範圍的轉型計劃時，我們決定減少營銷支出，這使我們能夠推動更強勁的收入和現金流，但也導致我們去年的收入和入學人數增長暫時下降。入學人數的下降通常會導致應收佣金餘額下降，而應收佣金餘額是最低資產覆蓋率的分子。雖然我們的運營決策得到了 eHealth 董事會中的 HIG 代表的鼓勵和支持，但它們也使我們面臨違反與此比率相關的優先股契約的風險。

Despite our best efforts to amend the financial preferred stock covenants and corresponding remedies, we were unable to find common ground. After careful analysis and consideration of various options supported by our Board of Directors, we made the decision to focus on making prudent investments to drive profitable growth, irrespective of the impact on the asset coverage ratio preferred stock covenant.

儘管我們盡了最大努力修改財務優先股契約和相應的補救措施，但我們無法找到共同點。經過仔細分析和考慮董事會支持的各種方案後，我們決定專注於審慎投資以推動盈利增長，而不考慮資產覆蓋率優先股契約的影響。

The outcome of this decision has been the strong operating and financial performance through the first half of the year that we shared with you today, and we believe will support our ability to drive profitable growth as we enter the very important second half of the year.

這一決定的結果是我們今天與您分享的今年上半年強勁的運營和財務業績，我們相信，隨著我們進入非常重要的下半年，這將支持我們推動盈利增長的能力。

It is important to note that tripping this preferred stock covenant does not create any issues from an acceleration of principal perspective. The key practical implications are not financial but rather governance related, and they include: one, under certain circumstances, HIG could be entitled to an additional board feet; two, HIG would have certain approval rights relating to the hiring and firing of 4 C-level roles, including CEO and CFO; and three, certain budget approval rights.

值得注意的是，從本金加速的角度來看，解除該優先股契約不會產生任何問題。主要的實際影響與財務無關，而是與治理相關，其中包括：第一，在某些情況下，HIG 可能有權獲得額外的董事會空間；二、HIG對CEO、CFO等4名C級職位的聘任和解聘擁有一定的審批權；三是一定的預算審批權。

Looking ahead, our Board of Directors and management team remain committed to acting in the best interest of the company and all of our shareholders. We are pleased with our results for this quarter and confident that the steps we are taking will enable us to drive significant shareholder value creation as we work towards achieving sustainable profitability and cash flow generation.

展望未來，我們的董事會和管理團隊將繼續致力於以公司和所有股東的最佳利益行事。我們對本季度的業績感到滿意，並相信我們正在採取的步驟將使我們能夠在努力實現可持續盈利和現金流生成的同時推動顯著的股東價值創造。

I'll now turn the floor to John Stelben, who will walk you through our second quarter financial performance in greater detail. John?

現在請約翰·斯特爾本 (John Stelben) 發言，他將向您詳細介紹我們第二季度的財務業績。約翰？

Thank you, Fran. Second quarter results came in ahead of our expectations, driven primarily by the positive adjustment revenue we recognized in the quarter, an important validation or commissions receivable assets. 2Q results also reflect the work in preparation for the upcoming AEP, including hiring and training of new benefit advisers. .

謝謝你，弗蘭。第二季度業績超出了我們的預期，這主要是由於我們在本季度確認的積極調整收入（一項重要的驗證或應收佣金資產）推動的。第二季度的業績還反映了為即將到來的 AEP 所做的準備工作，包括招聘和培訓新的福利顧問。 。

Total revenue for the second quarter was $66.8 million, an increase of 32% compared to the second quarter of 2022. This includes Medicare segment revenue of $55.4 million, an increase of 35% year-over-year, and revenue from our Individual, Family and Small Business Group segment of $11.3 million, an increase of 21% over the same time period. Positive net tail or adjustment revenue was $18.7 million, including $13.4 million in the Medicare segment and $5.3 million from the IFP and SMB segment.

第二季度總收入為 6680 萬美元，較 2022 年第二季度增長 32%。其中包括醫療保險部門收入 5540 萬美元，同比增長 35%，以及來自我們的個人、家庭的收入小型企業集團業務收入1130萬美元，同比增長21%。正淨尾部或調整收入為 1870 萬美元，其中 1340 萬美元來自 Medicare 部門，530 萬美元來自 IFP 和 SMB 部門。

Excluding the impact of the tail, second quarter revenue was within our expectations. As Fran mentioned in his remarks, we have over $170 million of cumulative tail revenue produced since we implemented ASC 606. The tail recognized this quarter in our Medicare segment is in large part related to the 2 most recent complete January cohorts. We see this as further proof of the stability of our LTVs and believe it should give investors confidence in our contract asset receivable.

排除尾部影響，第二季度營收在我們預期之內。正如Fran 在講話中提到的，自實施ASC 606 以來，我們累計產生了超過1.7 億美元的尾部收入。本季度我們醫療保險部門確認的尾部收入在很大程度上與最近2 個完整的1 月份隊列相關。我們認為這進一步證明了我們LTV的穩定性，並相信這應該讓投資者對我們的合同資產應收款充滿信心。

GAAP net loss of $23.5 million improved from $37.5 million in Q2 '22. Adjusted EBITDA loss of $14.8 million improved from a loss of $33.3 million a year ago. These improvements in our earnings were driven by stronger revenue as well as operational enhancements and impact from our 2022 transformation efforts.

GAAP 淨虧損為 2350 萬美元，較 2022 年第二季度的 3750 萬美元有所改善。調整後 EBITDA 虧損為 1,480 萬美元，較一年前的虧損 3,330 萬美元有所改善。我們收益的這些改善是由收入增長、運營增強以及 2022 年轉型努力的影響推動的。

Turning to the Medicare segment. Second quarter enrollments across all Medicare products declined 30% year-over-year in line with our expectations. Similar to the first quarter, this enrollment decline reflects a reduction in our marketing spend and productive agent headcount compared to the same quarter a year ago. As a reminder, we temporarily reduced our investment in new member acquisition as we focused on increasing our enrollment quality and making changes to our sales and marketing organizations as part of the transformation program.

轉向醫療保險領域。第二季度所有 Medicare 產品的註冊人數同比下降 30%，符合我們的預期。與第一季度類似，入學人數下降反映了我們的營銷支出和高效代理人數與去年同期相比的減少。提醒一下，我們暫時減少了對新會員獲取的投資，因為我們專注於提高註冊質量並對我們的銷售和營銷組織進行變革，作為轉型計劃的一部分。

During the second quarter, we began ramping our Medicare benefit adviser force as we march toward our goal of returning to Medicare enrollment growth this AEP. Another reason for our earlier ramp is to fulfill the staffing needs in support of our carrier dedicated services, which will play a larger role in our overall operations this year. Our customer care and enrollment expense, which increased 12% on a non-GAAP basis includes costs associated with the compensation, training and licensing of the new advisers we hired this quarter. Our second quarter CC&E expense per approved member increased at a higher rate year-over-year compared to total CC&E spend, given that incoming agents have been in training and many of them were not yet producing enrollments for most of the second quarter. In total, we estimate roughly $6 million of our CC&E costs in the quarter were allocated to nonproducing agents.

在第二季度，我們開始加強我們的醫療保險福利顧問隊伍，朝著本年度醫療保險入學人數恢復增長的目標邁進。我們提前升級的另一個原因是滿足支持我們的運營商專用服務的人員需求，這將在我們今年的整體運營中發揮更大的作用。我們的客戶服務和註冊費用按非公認會計原則計算增加了 12%，其中包括與我們本季度聘用的新顧問的薪酬、培訓和許可相關的費用。與CC&E 總支出相比，我們第二季度每名獲批准會員的CC&E 費用同比增長更高，因為新加入的代理一直在接受培訓，而且其中許多代理在第二季度的大部分時間裡尚未產生註冊人數。總的來說，我們估計本季度大約 600 萬美元的 CC&E 成本分配給了非生產代理商。

Despite these costs, telephonic conversions for active agents increased again on a year-over-year basis by a small percentage. We expect to deliver another annual increase in call center conversions during the critical fourth quarter, reflecting additional enhancements to our hiring, training and overall telesales management processes.

儘管存在這些成本，活躍座席的電話轉化率仍同比小幅增長。我們預計在關鍵的第四季度，呼叫中心的轉化率將再次實現年度增長，這反映出我們對招聘、培訓和整體電話銷售管理流程的進一步增強。

Our variable marketing cost per approved Medicare member decreased by 3% year-over-year as a result of improved conversions from our incumbent agents as well as our ongoing commitment to efficient deployment of marketing spend. We expect to see a more meaningful reduction in variable marketing costs for approved Medicare member in Q4.

由於我們現有代理商的轉化率有所提高以及我們對有效部署營銷支出的持續承諾，我們每位批准的 Medicare 會員的可變營銷成本同比下降了 3%。我們預計第四季度批准的醫療保險會員的可變營銷成本將出現更有意義的降低。

Second quarter Medicare Advantage LTV was $891, a year-over-year increase of 1%. This increase reflects favorable persistency and commission rate trends partially offset by product and carrier mix. The tail we recognized this quarter was driven by several historical cohorts with a large portion coming from January 1 enrollment cohorts in 2021 and 2022, enrolled in the 2020 and 2021 AEPs, respectively.

第二季度 Medicare Advantage LTV 為 891 美元，同比增長 1%。這一增長反映了良好的持續性和佣金率趨勢，部分被產品和運營商組合所抵消。我們本季度認識到的尾部是由幾個歷史隊列驅動的，其中很大一部分來自 2021 年和 2022 年 1 月 1 日註冊的隊列，分別註冊了 2020 年和 2021 年的 AEP。

Some of the underlying factors include the conservative LTVs at which these cohorts were initially booked and the early impact of some of the retention measures we have put into place over the last 18 months. Favorable developments in these recent AEP cohorts underscore the strength of our commissions receivable assets.

一些潛在因素包括這些群體最初預訂時的保守 LTV，以及我們在過去 18 個月中實施的一些保留措施的早期影響。最近這些 AEP 群體的有利發展凸顯了我們應收佣金資產的實力。

Second quarter non-commission revenue was $6.6 million, consisting primarily of Medicare advertising or sponsorship revenue. This represented an increase of $4 million compared to a year ago, driven primarily by timing. Specifically, in 2022, most of the sponsorship revenue generated in the first half of the year came during the first quarter. Medicare segment loss was $4.7 million, a significant improvement compared to the segment loss of $25.3 million in 2Q '22.

第二季度非佣金收入為 660 萬美元，主要包括醫療保險廣告或贊助收入。這意味著與一年前相比增加了 400 萬美元，這主要是由於時機的推動。具體來說，2022年上半年產生的讚助收入大部分來自第一季度。醫療保險部門虧損為 470 萬美元，與 2022 年第二季度 2530 萬美元的部門虧損相比有了顯著改善。

Within our Individual, Family and Small business group segment, which also includes our ancillary products, revenue of $11.3 million increased 21% year-over-year driven by higher tail revenue as well as another increase in estimated lifetime value of our IFP products. Approved enrollments decrease for IFP and ancillary products, while SMB approvals increased moderately compared to Q2 of '22. Our combined tech and content and general and administrative costs increased 4% compared to a year ago. Underneath that, non-GAAP tech and content expense declined $2.6 million or 16%, reflecting our cost reduction efforts and non-GAAP G&A increased by $3.9 million or 27%, driven primarily by higher bonus accrual due to increased annual outlook, which is now above our internal financial performance targets.

在我們的個人、家庭和小型企業集團部門（還包括我們的輔助產品）中，由於尾部收入增加以及我們的 IFP 產品的估計生命週期價值再次增加，收入達到 1130 萬美元，同比增長 21%。與 22 年第二季度相比，IFP 和輔助產品的批准註冊數量有所減少，而 SMB 批准數量略有增加。與一年前相比，我們的綜合技術和內容以及一般和管理成本增加了 4%。在此之下，非GAAP 技術和內容費用下降了260 萬美元，即16%，反映了我們削減成本的努力，而非GAAP G&A 增加了390 萬美元，即27%，這主要是由於年度展望增加而導致的應計獎金增加所致，目前，高於我們的內部財務績效目標。

Non-GAAP marketing and advertising costs decreased 23% year-over-year. Beneath that, variable marketing decreased 33%, in line with the 30% decline we saw in Medicare approved enrollments. Non-GAAP CC&E costs increased 12% year-over-year. As I mentioned earlier, this reflects our agent ramp during the quarter in preparation for AEP. Our total non-GAAP operating expenses declined 3% compared to Q2 of '22.

非 GAAP 營銷和廣告成本同比下降 23%。在此之下，可變營銷下降了 33%，與我們看到的 Medicare 批准註冊人數下降 30% 一致。非 GAAP CC&E 成本同比增長 12%。正如我之前提到的，這反映了我們在本季度為 AEP 做準備而增加的代理數量。與 2022 年第二季度相比，我們的非 GAAP 運營支出總額下降了 3%。

Total operating cash outflow for the second quarter improved over $16 million to $9.4 million from $25.8 million in Q2 '22. This was driven by our enhanced cost structure, stronger profitability and better-than-expected commission collections. Additionally, for the 12-month period ending June 30, 2023, operating cash flows was a positive $3.2 million, ahead of our original goal to become operating cash flow positive on a trailing 12-month basis in March of next year. We expect for operating cash flow to be negative for the calendar year 2023 as reflected in guidance as we invest for AEP execution. We expect to return to breakeven to slightly positive operating cash flow for the trailing 12 months ended March '24 and plan to build on that foundation going forward.

第二季度的總運營現金流出從 2022 年第二季度的 2580 萬美元增加到 940 萬美元，超過 1600 萬美元。這是由我們改善的成本結構、更強的盈利能力和好於預期的佣金收入推動的。此外，截至 2023 年 6 月 30 日的 12 個月期間，運營現金流為正 320 萬美元，超出了我們在明年 3 月實現連續 12 個月運營現金流為正的最初目標。我們預計 2023 年的運營現金流將為負，正如我們投資 AEP 執行的指導中所反映的那樣。我們預計截至 2024 年 3 月的過去 12 個月將恢復盈虧平衡，運營現金流略為正，併計劃在此基礎上繼續發展。

We ended the second quarter with $189.8 million in cash, cash equivalents and short-term marketable securities ahead of our expectations. Our balance sheet also reflects $188.7 million in short-term commission receivables expected to be collected over the next 12 months and $600.9 million in long-term commission receivables. We continue to believe we have sufficient liquidity to execute on our operating plan this year and bridge us to positive cash flow.

截至第二季度末，我們的現金、現金等價物和短期有價證券為 1.898 億美元，超出了我們的預期。我們的資產負債表還反映了預計在未來 12 個月內收取的 1.887 億美元的短期佣金應收款和 6.009 億美元的長期應收佣金。我們仍然相信，我們有足夠的流動性來執行今年的運營計劃，並幫助我們實現正現金流。

Moving on to our 2023 outlook. We are improving our guidance ranges for total revenue, GAAP net loss and adjusted EBITDA to reflect the impact of the positive sale revenue we recognized in the second quarter, net of the incremental bonus accrual of $7 million for the full year. While cash collections year-to-date are ahead of our expectations, we are reiterating our operating cash flow guidance ranges given that tail revenue and bonus accrual have a neutral impact on cash flow and due to the importance of fourth quarter on our overall operating cash flow for the year.

繼續我們的 2023 年展望。我們正在提高總收入、GAAP 淨虧損和調整後 EBITDA 的指導範圍，以反映我們在第二季度確認的正銷售收入（扣除全年 700 萬美元的增量獎金）的影響。雖然今年迄今為止的現金回款超出了我們的預期，但考慮到尾部收入和應計獎金對現金流量具有中性影響以及第四季度對我們整體運營現金的重要性，我們重申了我們的運營現金流量指引範圍當年的流量。

Our new guidance ranges are as follows. Total revenue for 2023 is now expected to be in the range of $439 million to $459 million compared to our prior guidance of $420 million to $440 million. GAAP net loss for '23 is now expected to be in the range of $46 million to $26 million compared to our prior guidance range of $55 million to $35 million. Adjusted EBITDA for '23 is now expected to be in the range of negative $3 million to positive $17 million compared to our prior guidance of negative $15 million to positive $5 million. We continue to expect operating cash flow for '23 to be in the range of negative $30 million to negative $15 million.

我們的新指導範圍如下。目前預計 2023 年的總收入將在 4.39 億美元至 4.59 億美元之間，而我們之前的指導為 4.2 億美元至 4.4 億美元。目前預計 23 年 GAAP 淨虧損將在 4600 萬美元至 2600 萬美元之間，而我們之前的指導範圍為 5500 萬美元至 3500 萬美元。 23 年調整後 EBITDA 目前預計在負 300 萬美元到正 1700 萬美元之間，而我們之前的指導為負 1500 萬美元到正 500 萬美元。我們繼續預計 23 年的運營現金流將在負 3000 萬美元至負 1500 萬美元之間。

Looking ahead to the third quarter, we expect to come in roughly flat with Q3 of 2022 on revenue. We also expect a sequential increase in CC&E costs which reflect a full quarter of compensation to our new advisers hired during Q2 and in July. It also reflects our initial planned investment in our marketing campaigns ahead of the AEP, as described by Fran. As a result, we expect our Q3 '23 adjusted EBITDA loss to be wider than it was in Q2 '23, excluding tail.

展望第三季度，我們預計收入將與 2022 年第三季度大致持平。我們還預計 CC&E 成本將連續增加，這反映了我們在第二季度和 7 月份僱用的新顧問的整個季度的薪酬。正如 Fran 所描述的，這也反映了我們在 AEP 之前對營銷活動的最初計劃投資。因此，我們預計 23 年第 3 季度調整後的 EBITDA 損失將比 23 年第 2 季度（不包括尾部）更大。

In closing, eHealth financial results reflect strong execution in the first half of the year as well as significant progress in our preparation for the upcoming Medicare enrollment season. We are also encouraged by the positive signs we are seeing in retention data for our recent AEP cohorts, including members we enrolled in the fourth quarter of 2022. Overall, we believe the company is in a strong position to achieve our goal of sustainable profitability driven by continued improvement in our enrollment margins, financial discipline, revenue diversification and positive cash flow generation.

最後，電子醫療財務業績反映了上半年的強勁執行力，以及我們在為即將到來的醫療保險投保季節做準備方面取得的重大進展。我們還對最近AEP 群體（包括我們在2022 年第四季度註冊的會員）的保留數據中看到的積極跡象感到鼓舞。總體而言，我們相信該公司處於有利地位，可以實現我們可持續盈利驅動的目標通過持續改善我們的入學率、財務紀律、收入多元化和正現金流的產生。

Operator, please open the line for questions.

接線員，請開通提問線路。

(Operator Instructions) The first question comes from George Sutton of Craig-Hallum.

（操作員說明）第一個問題來自 Craig-Hallum 的 George Sutton。

John, I wondered if you could address the thoughts on LTVs going forward, given the tail revenues are suggestive, obviously, of you've been underbedding on the LTVs heretofore. And you also mentioned the most recent cohort was performing better than expected, which also would technically influence LTVs. So can you walk through that for us?

約翰，我想知道您是否可以談談對未來生命週期價值的想法，因為尾部收入顯然表明您迄今為止一直在生命週期價值方面表現不佳。您還提到最近的隊列表現好於預期，這從技術上來說也會影響生命週期價值。那麼您能為我們介紹一下嗎？

Sure, George. Thank you for the question. I think on the LTVs, in our guidance, we had a view of what LTVs where they'd be headed. I think that as you think about the January '24 cohort and the recent CMS commission increases, that was a little bit lower than probably we expected, but that's going to be offset by the more positive retention we've seen and underneath that, some carrier mix. So we feel good about the LTVs being sort of flat to maybe slightly above where we were running last year, but those are the main reasons.

當然，喬治。感謝你的提問。我認為在 LTV 方面，在我們的指導中，我們了解了 LTV 的發展方向。我認為，當你考慮 24 年 1 月的群體和最近 CMS 佣金增加時，這比我們預期的要低一些，但這將被我們看到的更積極的保留所抵消，在這之下，一些載體組合。因此，我們對生命週期價值持平，可能略高於去年的水平感到滿意，但這些是主要原因。

Fran, you mentioned that you had some incremental thoughts on the CMS rules as they were laid out from what you had discussed on the last quarterly call. Could you just share what those incremental thoughts are?

Fran，您提到您對 CMS 規則有一些漸進的想法，因為它們是根據您在上一季度電話會議中討論的內容制定的。您能分享一下這些增量想法是什麼嗎？

George, thanks for the question. Our views have not changed much in the quarter. There still remains the CMS marketing guidelines to be published. And I think it really comes down to one component of the 48-hour rule, and that specifically is with respect to whether appointments are necessary when a beneficiary is responding to, say, a postcard or some other direct mail or other marketing communications. Most of our volume is really inbound that does not require the 48-hour scope of appointment. So we still feel very good about that situation.

喬治，謝謝你的提問。我們的觀點在本季度沒有太大變化。 CMS 營銷指南仍有待發布。我認為這實際上歸結為 48 小時規則的一個組成部分，特別是當受益人回復明信片或其他直郵或其他營銷通訊時是否有必要進行預約。我們的大部分業務量都是入境的，不需要 48 小時的預約範圍。所以我們對這種情況仍然感覺很好。

That said, we've increased our appointment setting capabilities because we think that it's a value add for customers -- prospective customers to -- we're a society that likes instant gratification. We -- our patients is warned if we're waiting more on call. By scheduling, they can focus on what's on their mind, what they need shorts on or whether they're in a shopping mode, and we can be very efficient about that. So -- but back to your -- the main point of your question, I don't think there's going to be anything or shattering when the guidelines come out. We think this is a very manageable situation.

也就是說，我們增加了預約設置功能，因為我們認為這對客戶（潛在客戶）來說是一種增值，我們是一個喜歡即時滿足的社會。如果我們需要等待更多時間，我們會警告我們的患者。通過安排，他們可以專注於自己的想法、需要穿什麼短褲或者是否處於購物模式，我們可以非常高效地做到這一點。所以，回到你的問題的要點，我認為當指導方針出來時，不會有任何事情或破壞。我們認為這是一個非常容易控制的情況。

Got you. If I could just sneak one more in. You mentioned your large carrier deal was beginning, but I believe you had a program with them last year. Can you just talk about the year-over-year expectations relative to that situation?

明白你了。如果我能再偷偷溜進去就好了。你提到你的大型運營商交易已經開始，但我相信你去年與他們有一個項目。您能否談談與這種情況相關的同比預期？

Happy to, George. Again, the customer in question, we hate to be so sort of cryptic about it, but we've been asked not to disclose the relationship by that particular customer. We currently support them in a call overflow capacity today. That changes to a dedicated carrier arrangement. So essentially, we become their primary source for closing their leads. That's something we're really excited about, number one. It plays to our strength. And while the structure of the arrangement will be changing after the first year into more of a fee-based will be in a broker of record relationship with them during the AEP. Is that helpful?

很高興，喬治。再說一次，對於有問題的客戶，我們不想對此如此神秘，但我們被要求不要透露該特定客戶的關係。我們目前以呼叫溢出能力支持他們。這改變了專用運營商安排。因此，從本質上講，我們成為他們關閉潛在客戶的主要來源。第一，這是我們真正感到興奮的事情。它發揮了我們的力量。雖然第一年之後安排的結構將發生變化，更多的是基於收費，但在 AEP 期間將與他們建立記錄經紀人關係。有幫助嗎？

Okay. That is.

好的。那是。

The next question comes from Jonathan Yong of Credit Suisse.

下一個問題來自瑞士信貸銀行的 Jonathan Yong。

Just curious if you received the first early look at the carrier benefit design and changes for the upcoming AEP season. And how does it track relative to your expectations prior years? And any thoughts on what it may mean for the overall market based on what you see so far?

只是好奇您是否能第一時間看到承運人福利設計以及即將到來的 AEP 季節的變化。與您前幾年的預期相比，情況如何？根據您目前的觀察，您對這對整個市場意味著什麼有何想法？

Jonathan, it's Fran. Let me start this off -- thanks for the question. We're still in the process of meeting with our robust carrier options. The team is still having meetings with both some of our largest carrier partners as well as some of the regional and local carriers. So it's pretty fluid at this point. That said, early indications are seem one, you've seen one, meaning one carrier in one market. I think it's oftentimes lost in the conversation that we tend to describe like Star Scores and on averages. But in fact, they vary on a contract-by-contract basis, which is usually the notes or a defined geography. So as I've said in my earlier remarks, I think it's going to play out that there are going to be markets where certain carriers are very strong and markets where they may not be as strong as they were this year. So it's -- I wouldn't draw any final conclusion then it will be an opportunity for customers to do a market check and make sure those existing MA customers are getting the best value either for zero premium or for the out-of-pocket cost that they'll incur.

喬納森，我是弗蘭。讓我開始吧——謝謝你的提問。我們仍在與我們強大的承運商選擇進行協商。該團隊仍在與我們的一些最大的運營商合作夥伴以及一些區域和本地運營商舉行會議。所以此時它非常流暢。也就是說，早期跡像似乎是一個，你已經看到了一個，這意味著一個市場中有一個運營商。我認為它經常在我們傾向於描述為“星級評分”和“平均值”的對話中丟失。但事實上，它們因合同而異，通常是註釋或定義的地理位置。因此，正如我在之前的講話中所說，我認為將會出現某些運營商非常強大的市場，以及它們可能不如今年那麼強大的市場。所以，我不會得出任何最終結論，那麼這將是客戶進行市場檢查並確保現有 MA 客戶以零保費或自付費用獲得最佳價值的機會他們會招致的。

Okay. Great. And then just going into just saying a question on those conversations so far. Are the carriers looking to provide additional resources via ad dollars or perhaps increasing the commission rates closer to the maximum just -- just any color on how they're discussing the environment given some of their changes, et cetera.

好的。偉大的。然後就目前為止的對話提出一個問題。運營商是否希望通過廣告費用提供額外的資源，或者可能將佣金率提高到接近最高水平——考慮到他們如何討論環境的一些變化，等等。

I would say this, Jonathan. It's very clear to us that there's a much valued relationship that we have with our carrier partners. They value us. They need us to support their growth objectives, particularly when situations where there's a bit of a reset and some -- among some carriers in some markets. So -- it's not just the growth, it's retention. And our view is that if the beneficiary is in the right plan, then we want to encourage them to stay in that plan with that particular carrier. If there's better opportunities that meets all their other requirements and needs, then of course, we'll help them through that process.

我會這麼說，喬納森。我們非常清楚，我們與運營商合作夥伴之間有著非常寶貴的關係。他們重視我們。他們需要我們支持他們的增長目標，特別是在某些市場的某些運營商出現一些重置的情況下。因此，這不僅僅是增長，更是保留。我們的觀點是，如果受益人加入了正確的計劃，那麼我們希望鼓勵他們繼續參與該特定承運人的計劃。如果有更好的機會可以滿足他們的所有其他要求和需求，那麼我們當然會幫助他們完成這個過程。

But in terms of specifics, add dollars, it's still very early in the process. I'd say over the next 45 days, a lot of that will be locked down. We're about 68 days out from the start of AEP or that 57 days out from the start of the marketing period, October 1. So we're progressing on track, and I think that carriers certainly going to do what they think is right for their companies to make sure that they're the best possible position for AEP and our relationship.

但就具體細節而言，加上美元，這個過程還處於早期階段。我想說，在接下來的 45 天內，其中很多都將被鎖定。距 AEP 開始大約還有 68 天，或者距 10 月 1 日營銷期開始還有 57 天。因此，我們正在按計劃取得進展，我認為運營商肯定會做他們認為正確的事情為他們的公司確保他們是AEP 和我們關係的最佳位置。

The next question comes from Daniel Grosslight of Citi.

下一個問題來自花旗銀行的丹尼爾·格羅斯萊特。

I want to stick with that line of questioning really on shopping behavior. And I think you've been pretty consistent about this since the Star scores changes were enacted and advanced right notes came out. But just given the greater differential benefit design, I think it's pretty clear that we'll likely see some increased shopping this AEP, which is a double-edged sword, right? You've got more people coming to your platform and potentially buying but potentially more churn as well.

我想堅持對購物行為的質疑。我認為自從星級分數變更頒布並且高級右音符出現以來，您對此一直非常一致。但考慮到更大的差異化福利設計，我認為很明顯我們可能會看到這個 AEP 的購物量增加，這是一把雙刃劍，對嗎？您有更多的人來到您的平台並可能進行購買，但也可能會出現更多的流失。

That's going to be offset by some of your retention efforts. So I'm just curious, net-net, what you're thinking about churn for this AEP, how that may impact LTVs just for the 4Q? And then if you can give any metrics around your recapture rates historically and what you're expecting for this AEP, that would be very helpful as well.

這將被你的一些保留努力所抵消。所以我只是好奇，net-net，您對這個 AEP 的流失有何看法，這可能會如何影響第四季度的 LTV？然後，如果您可以提供有關歷史重新捕獲率的任何指標以及您對此 AEP 的期望，那也會非常有幫助。

Daniel, thanks for the question. I feel more confident despite the fact that as you've characterized, I think your characterization is fair. The key is knowing which geographies could be most disruptive among carriers. So it's not something you wait until the annual notice of change. The ANOC comes out this month and beneficiaries start getting notifications of how their current plan will be impacted by changes that carriers are making for next year. We've been focusing, as I've shared in earlier calls, we've been focusing on new retention strategies so that we are touching our customers with greater regularity.

丹尼爾，謝謝你的提問。儘管正如您所描述的那樣，我還是感到更有信心，我認為您的描述是公平的。關鍵是要知道哪些地區對運營商來說最具破壞性。因此，您不必等到年度變更通知後才進行更改。 ANOC 將於本月發布，受益人開始收到通知，了解運營商明年所做的改變將如何影響他們當前的計劃。正如我在之前的電話會議中所分享的那樣，我們一直專注於新的保留策略，以便我們能夠更頻繁地接觸客戶。

And we know that that's sometimes it's more challenging than others because people don't like to answer the phone. So we have to use e-mail, text and other marketing communications to remind them that we're here for them. So we're on offense and -- And I think that will be our strategy throughout AEP. As far as the recapture historically, the company has been around 10%, I think that there is great upside to that. And just as we are demonstrating our ability to improve persistency, I think the recapture rate will not retreat. I think it's every opportunity for us to go on offense and make sure that we capture much more than what we've done historically.

我們知道，有時這比其他人更具挑戰性，因為人們不喜歡接聽電話。因此，我們必須使用電子郵件、短信和其他營銷通訊來提醒他們，我們隨時為他們服務。所以我們進攻——我認為這將是我們整個 AEP 的策略。就歷史上的收復率而言，該公司一直在10%左右，我認為這有很大的上升空間。正如我們正在展示我們提高持久性的能力一樣，我認為重新捕獲率不會下降。我認為這是我們繼續進攻的每一個機會，並確保我們獲得比歷史上更多的成績。

Got it. Okay. And then just a quick one on the increase in CC&E per MA equivalent remember this quarter. You mentioned kind of your hiring earlier this year, you have less productive agents this quarter on your platform than historically. Can you just remind us how the hiring changed this year versus last year because last year you were hiring earlier as well. And if there were any changes in compensation or talent pool makeup that drove that increase?

知道了。好的。然後快速介紹一下本季度每 MA 當量的 CC&E 增長情況。您提到了今年早些時候的招聘情況，本季度您平台上的代理效率低於歷史水平。您能否提醒我們今年的招聘與去年相比有何變化，因為去年您也提前進行了招聘。薪酬或人才庫構成是否有任何變化推動了這一增長？

Sure. Going back to last year, we rightsized the organization largely in the CC&E, the sales organization. So that began in April of last year. So throughout the second quarter, we were removing agents. So the ramp was, I'd say, smaller than this year. We are largely completed in terms of all of the incoming classes. We had a very successful sales recruitment effort. Our HR team really came through in a big, big way as well as our sales supervisors who do the interviewing and the ultimate determinations that they want on the teams. So I'm pleased with our progress. The -- our training activities and initiatives are so much more developed this year.

當然。回到去年，我們對組織進行了精簡，主要集中在 CC&E（銷售組織）。事情是從去年四月開始的。因此，在整個第二季度，我們都在撤掉特工。所以我想說，坡道比今年小。就所有即將入學的課程而言，我們已基本完成。我們的銷售招聘工作非常成功。我們的人力資源團隊以及我們的銷售主管確實取得了巨大的成功，他們進行了面試並做出了他們想要的團隊的最終決定。所以我對我們的進展感到滿意。今年我們的培訓活動和舉措更加完善。

We continue to build on the success from last year, but taking it to new levels. So I think we're going to have kind of a better training camp, if you will, as we prepare for the selling season, and we should see -- start to see some of that in the third quarter because we want to give our new benefit advisers as many opportunities to sell as possible, leading up to October 15.

我們繼續在去年的成功基礎上再接再厲，並將其提升到新的水平。因此，我認為我們將有一個更好的訓練營，如果你願意的話，當我們為銷售季節做準備時，我們應該看到 - 在第三季度開始看到其中的一些，因為我們希望給予我們新福利顧問在10 月15 日之前提供盡可能多的出售機會。

Got it. And were there any changes in overall compensation structure or levels as well?

知道了。整體薪酬結構或水平是否也有任何變化？

Look, largely no. And the reason for that is, as I know you recall, I believe, we are remote first, and I believe that, that remote first operating model for the sales organization allows us to manage where there may be some cost pressures in certain markets, we can work around that. We want to make sure we've got quality benefit advisers representing all the time zones in the United States, so we can meet our prospective customers and current customers' needs. So I'm not concerned about any cost pressures on the CC&E side.

看，基本上沒有。原因是，據我所知，您還記得，我相信，我們首先是遠程的，而且我相信，銷售組織的遠程第一運營模式使我們能夠管理某些市場中可能存在成本壓力的情況，我們可以解決這個問題。我們希望確保我們擁有代表美國所有時區的優質福利顧問，以便我們能夠滿足潛在客戶和當前客戶的需求。所以我不擔心CC&E方面的任何成本壓力。

(Operator Instructions) The next question comes from George Hill, Deutsche Bank.

（操作員指示）下一個問題來自德意志銀行的喬治·希爾。

I have kind of another question, it's LTV-related. Given that it looks like that we're moving into a year with higher market share shifts due to some of the issues the plans are having with Star ratings. I guess my first question would be is, how do you guys think that, that has a meaningful impact on LTVs in 2024? And do you guys feel like kind of over-indexed to any of the plans that are having Star issues?

我還有另一個問題，與 LTV 相關。由於計劃在星級評級方面存在一些問題，我們似乎即將進入市場份額變化更大的一年。我想我的第一個問題是，你們認為這對 2024 年的生命週期價值有何有意義的影響？你們是否覺得對任何有星級問題的計劃過度索引了？

John, why don't you take that question?

約翰，你為什麼不回答這個問題呢？

Sure. Let me start with the last part of your question first. We -- for the most part, the majority of our commission arrangements are at the CMS max. So to the extent that there's some mix shift between carriers, we think that, that could be somewhat muted. The -- as we think about projecting our LTVs, and obviously, a big piece of that is churn, I'd like to say persistency instead of churn. But all we can really do is look at our historical data. And as we understand the changes our carriers are making, we try to factor that in as best we can.

當然。讓我先從你問題的最後一部分開始。我們——在很大程度上，我們的大部分佣金安排都是在 CMS 最高限額內。因此，我們認為，就運營商之間存在的一些混合轉變而言，這種情況可能會有所減弱。當我們考慮預測生命週期價值時，很明顯，其中很大一部分是流失，我想說的是持久性而不是流失。但我們真正能做的就是查看歷史數據。當我們了解運營商正在做出的改變時，我們會盡力將其考慮在內。

But again, as I stated earlier, we think that the CMS commission increase, which average was about 1.6%, that's certainly lower than expect ever as we project LTVs, we do look at our persistency and how that's improving and that has a positive impact. So again, overall, I think the LTVs, we see a flat to slightly up year-over-year. I'll stop there. I'm not sure how to expand on that anymore.

但正如我之前所說，我們認為 CMS 佣金增長平均約為 1.6%，這肯定低於我們預測 LTV 時的預期，我們確實關注我們的持久性以及如何改進，這會產生積極影響。因此，總的來說，我認為生命週期價值與去年同期相比持平或略有上升。我就到此為止。我不知道如何再擴展它。

No, I think that's helpful. And Fran, I'd probably ask you a big picture question about industry structure as there are a couple of publicly traded companies in this space, there's kind of a fragmented private market. I know that you guys have a little bit of -- constrained a little bit around the cap structure and what your investors look like. I guess, kind of do you see any opportunities kind of for industry consolidation where the company could kind of generate excess operating leverage? Or kind of like my big picture question is kind of about how do you think about industry structure and where we are in industry life cycle?

不，我認為這很有幫助。弗蘭，我可能會問你一個關於行業結構的大問題，因為這個領域有幾家上市公司，有一個分散的私人市場。我知道你們在上限結構和投資者的形象方面有一些限制。我想，您是否看到任何行業整合的機會，公司可以產生過多的運營槓桿？或者有點像我的大局問題是關於您如何看待行業結構以及我們在行業生命週期中的位置？

Sure, George. I'll take you back to fourth quarter of last year. I made certain remarks about where the industry is and where I think it's going. And I use the phrase of the term inflection point. We reiterated that at our Investor and Analyst Day back in mid-May. We've seen -- it's almost prophetic because it was that same week. We saw some news of financial stress with certain organizations, one declaring Chapter 11 bankruptcy. We know companies that are looking to exit or have exited, others that are looking to divest having difficulty. So I think there's a consolidation, at least the first phase of consolidation is already in motion. And I think there's every reason to believe that, that will continue, maybe not at the same pace and maybe sometimes where there's a lot more activity than others. But I do think that this sector is right for some consolidation. And I think it will further the rationalization of how these businesses operate. And I think that bodes well for the industry.

當然，喬治。我將帶你回到去年第四季度。我對這個行業的現狀以及我認為它的發展方向發表了一些評論。我使用“拐點”一詞。我們在五月中旬的投資者和分析師日重申了這一點。我們已經看到——這幾乎是預言性的，因為就在同一周。我們看到了某些組織面臨財務壓力的消息，其中一個組織根據《破產法》第 11 章宣布破產。我們知道那些正在尋求退出或已經退出的公司，還有一些正在尋求撤資的公司卻遇到了困難。所以我認為整合已經存在，至少第一階段的整合已經開始。我認為我們有充分的理由相信這種情況將會繼續下去，但可能不會以同樣的速度，有時可能會比其他人有更多的活動。但我確實認為這個行業適合進行一些整合。我認為這將進一步使這些企業的運營方式更加合理化。我認為這對該行業來說是個好兆頭。

There are no further questions. I will turn the call over to Fran Soistman for closing remarks.

沒有其他問題了。我將把電話轉給弗蘭·索伊斯特曼 (Fran Soistman) 致閉幕詞。

Well, thank you, operator. I want to thank everyone for joining us again today. I appreciate the continued support of eHealth and your interest. We demonstrated in this quarter that the transformation initiatives that were launched more than 16 months ago have really paved the way for a new organizational strategy and cost structure and approach to this business. We are -- I have every reason to conclude that our transformation -- our enterprise transformation will largely be wrapped up by the end of this year. There'll be some areas where that word may still be used to describe what's going on, for example, in our old marketing strategy because we started a little later.

好的，謝謝你，接線員。我要感謝大家今天再次加入我們。我感謝 eHealth 的持續支持和您的關注。我們在本季度證明，16 個多月前啟動的轉型舉措確實為新的組織戰略、成本結構和業務方法鋪平了道路。我們——我有充分的理由得出這樣的結論：我們的轉型——我們的企業轉型將在今年年底前基本完成。在某些領域，這個詞仍然可以用來描述正在發生的事情，例如，在我們舊的營銷策略中，因為我們開始得晚一些。

But I'm very pleased with the progress the organization has made the health of the company. The organizational health is very, very high, very strong. And that is something we don't talk about much, nor many people talk about in business. But when you look at the ability to navigate difficult challenging times or opportunistic times, the organization health plays a big role, and I'm very pleased with where eHealth is in that process.

但我對組織為公司的健康發展所取得的進展感到非常滿意。組織健康狀況非常非常高、非常強。這是我們不常談論的事情，也是很多人在商界談論的事情。但是，當你考慮應對困難時期或機會主義時期的能力時，組織健康發揮著重要作用，我對電子醫療在這一過程中所處的位置感到非常滿意。

So again, thank you all very much. Have a great day.

再次非常感謝大家。祝你有美好的一天。

Ladies and gentlemen, this does conclude the conference call for today. We thank you for your participation and ask that you please disconnect.

女士們、先生們，今天的電話會議到此結束。我們感謝您的參與，並請您斷開連接。