The Evolution of Insurance: How Andrew Jernigan is Revolutionizing Global Health Coverage

The COVID-19 pandemic accelerated remote work and location independence worldwide. But traditional insurance models have lagged in meeting the evolving needs of globally distributed companies and remote workers. Enter Insured Nomads, a startup aiming to revolutionize global health insurance.

Led by CEO Andrew Jernigan, Insured Nomads leverages fintech, insurtech, and traveltech to make insurance intuitive and mobile-friendly. “We have built insurance for today’s workforce; health insurance for remote workers and group employee benefits for distributed teams, multinational companies and organizations,” says Jernigan.

Key innovations include a geo-located emergency response app, digital payment cards for care, and integrated travel safety features. “Our native apps with instant response…truly make interacting with us closer to our goal of being the first lovable insurance,” he shares.

Jernigan draws from decades of experience across healthcare and insurance to reimagine coverage. Read on to learn more about his vision for the future of global health insurance.

Please provide a brief introduction of yourself and your professional background.

As co-founder and CEO of Insured Nomads, a young company disrupting the way insurance is delivered, Andrew stands dead center at the intersection of insurance and traveler safety innovation, building a delivery model for travel and global health insurance that will serve as the standard for the future of insurtech/fintech/traveltech. Passionate about protecting people around the world, Andrew is hyper- focused on building a new insurance model, so travelers, expats and digital nomads can explore the world freely and work within it with increased wellbeing and peace of mind.

Andrew’s extensive experience in the healthcare, insurance and banking industries locally, regionally and globally, and his early adoption of expatriate/nomadic life, has provided him with the unique experiences and perspective to break boundaries through the merging of technology with humanity. Having volunteered, traveled and lived on several continents, he learned first-hand that insurance had to evolve to provide relevant, trustworthy, and intuitive, person-centered services that world travelers and remote workers needed as remote work increasingly became normalized and expected.

Andrew is a graduate of Samford University in Birmingham, Alabama, and currently working on a Master in Big Data & Business Intelligence from European Business School of Barcelona, married to co-founder Juliana Jernigan, of which they share three young adults. In addition to serving as CEO, Andrew is also a Strategic Advisor for Shap, and Share Hope International, a fellow with Travel Tech Executive Fellowship and On Deck (ODS3), and co-host of the popular podcast, The New Nomad. A frequent speaker at industry events such as Insurtech Insights, Travel Insurance Forum, Global Health Insurance Conference, and others.

Please tell us a bit more about your startup – what does it offer, what problem does it solve, and who is your target audience?

Insured Nomads has built insurance and employee benefits for the modern company; empowering those that have operations in multiple countries, a work anywhere program, remote workers or a distributed team with health, medical, safety, security and wellbeing. We are a fully integrated insurance, finance and travel ecosystem powered by AI/ML, GPS enabled so our communities can safely and intelligently live work and play globally. Global uncertainty is here to stay. Insurance for the modern company to provide health insurance for workers in different countries or ‘work from anywhere’ has not been accessible and the legacy carriers have not adapted to the technological shift that the insured expects and deserves. We have built insurance for today’s workforce; health insurance for remote workers and group employee benefits for distributed teams, multinational companies and organizations. Through the application of fintech, traveltech and insurtech developments we make your travel as safe and smart as staying at home. We design, re-engineer the way insurance is build and delivered for the distributed team, traveler and corporate client through robust product design, native app for ease of use, and digital payment card for payment of care. There has not been a solution for health insurance for both local employees and cross-border/expat/nomad team members that is priced according to each persons location and benefit need but all in one efficient group, Insured Nomads has this solved and with ai/ml and fintech/traveltech.

What inspired you to start your own business? What was the “aha” moment?

Going back to university years I was on the team to build online banking (bill pay, view your accounts, etc) then many years later realized that our sector of insurance was still lagging in the customer and broker experience, policy design and application of technology so I gathered great minds to form an innovative solution: Insured Nomads: the evolution of insurance for the revolution of work and travel.

What were some of the biggest initial challenges you faced in getting your business off the ground? How did you overcome them?

New builds are not common in ‘Accident and Health’ and technology has been slow to be applied within our space so getting the reinsurance/capacity for what we envisioned to re-engineer what is needed in the world of work and for the future of living was the biggest challenge we faced. Our collaboration with giants in the field to take the financial risk (Allianz Partners and C&F) while allowing us to stretch the limits and be innovative with the ease of use for what the member expects today of their insurance provider.

How did you identify a gap in the market or need that your business fulfills?

We birthed this from decades of experience by our founding team that came from Cigna Global, MetLife Expat, AIG, United Healthcare Global, and from the brokering of dozens of traditional carriers. It was the extensive background that propelled us forward to build to fill a void in the financing of healthcare for the globally distributed company, and those beginning to have a flexible work and work from anywhere program.

How do you stand out from the competition in your space? What sets your product/service apart?

The service through modern application of technology interfaces powered by a team that cares immensely is at the core of what differentiates Insured Nomads. Our native apps (iOS & Android) with instant response button to global emergency assistance with geo-ip enabled so a response vehicle can be dispatched or evac arranged is a powerful travetech element that is included for all our members. The fintech component (Nomads Cash) is a branded Mastercard for payment at the point of care simplifies the pay-and-chase claims process that is predominant. Our non-insured assistance products such as Legal Guardian (pre-paid legal assistance around the world), InstaPass (lounge access for delayed flights), and other innovative integrations truly make interacting with us closer to our goal of being the first loveable insurance.

What does a typical day or week look like for you? How do you manage work-life balance?

Living the founder lifestyle in a globally distributed and fully remote company has presented growth opportunities for me. Now, many years in I believe that I have landed at a rhythm that is more effective and healthy. My day starts quite early at 4:45 to 5am with meditation, prayer and reading, coffee and then a dive into touchpoints with team members on the other side of the globe. I pause to eat breakfast, family time and drive kids to school, then back to work-out before diving in to early calls to Europe and Asia. Email and follow-up blocks during my day are essential, along with blocks for music, meditation and family time. I do break for dinner, then a short segment again after for follow-ups with those in the APAC region. Ending the evening with family time, and a final segment to read and pray before bed around 9:30pm (average).

What are some future goals or plans you have for your business in the next few years?

My biggest goal is to be extravagantly generous in giving through our social impact partnership with Not For Sale (https://insurednomads.com/social-impact) in our efforts to support work to help those vulnerable to exploitation and human trafficking. As a company, our commitment to provide protection to our members with insurance, assistance and risk management is paired with our pledge to protect those affected by modern-day slavery.

Andrew Jernigan and Insured Nomads demonstrate that innovation in insurance is possible when driven by deep care for protecting people. As remote work evolves, visionaries like Jernigan will lead the charge in insurance models that transcend borders and empower location independence. The future of global health coverage is bright under their stewardship.