The Broken Middle: Rethinking the Role of Health Insurance in a Fragmented System

Written By Ad Min

Guest Spotlight:

Chris Dallas-Feeney is a highly experienced healthcare and strategy executive with nearly five decades of global business leadership. Most recently, he served as SVP and Chief Strategy & Innovation Officer at AmeriHealth Caritas, and previously led Strategy and Operations for Market Access at Novartis.  He has also been a partner at Booz Allen Hamilton and KPMG, and ran his own consulting practice, advising major health insurers and global pharmaceutical companies on corporate strategy, organizational design, marketing, and IT.

Academically, Chris holds a PhD in Political Science (GWU) with a focus on international relations and the Middle East, along with degrees from Georgetown (M.A. Security Studies) and Penn State (B.A. Accounting).  In addition to his industry work, he is an active educator, teaching corporate strategy, economics, and international relations at multiple universities, and currently serves as an Executive Advisor to ZS Associates in its Health Plan and Provider practice.

With deep exposure to insurance operations, Chris brings a sharp, practical lens to how health systems actually function, not how they pretend to. In this episode, he highlights the real value health insurers may be able to play in 2026, questions decades of value-based care hype, and breaks down the structural flaws, from short-term thinking to weak collaboration, that continue to hold healthcare back.


Here are the 3 Key Takeaways from our Conversation:

1. Health Insurance Has a Role, But It’s Blurred Insurance was built to spread risk, but today it often feels like a barrier, not a bridge. Chris points out that while the model still makes sense, execution has drifted. Outsourcing and fragmented care management have reduced insurers to administrative layers instead of true care enablers. In 2026, health insurers can deliver value by partnering with providers, helping them understand risk, and leveraging SDOH for preventive care.

2. Value-Based Care Sounds Great. Reality Says Otherwise After 20+ years, value-based care still hasn't been delivered. Why? The system isn’t ready. Providers lack infrastructure, insurers lack patience, and outcomes aren’t properly measured. The result is a model that looks good on paper but struggles in practice.

3. Short-Term Thinking Is Killing Long-Term Impact SDOH can improve outcomes and reduce costs, but only over time. One-year insurance cycles and member churn kill that incentive. Even when interventions work, the benefits often go elsewhere. Until timelines shift, the system will keep treating symptoms instead of causes.

Check out the full episode here:

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