Can Cigna's Smart Coverage Help Close Health-Cost Gaps?

The Cigna Group’s CI health benefits arm, Cigna Healthcare, is linking medical and supplemental health benefits through a new connected experience designed to make cash support easier to access for costly health events. Its Medical with Smart Coverage option can be added to qualifying high-deductible health plans and may provide eligible members up to $7,000 for covered injuries, illnesses or hospitalizations.

Cigna is also rolling out Simple File Sync Plus, which automatically matches qualifying medical claims with eligible supplemental benefits, reducing paperwork and missed claims. Smart Coverage launches Jan. 1, 2027, for U.S. clients with 500 to 2,999 employees at launch, with broader availability planned for 2028.

The move targets a clear affordability gap in employer health coverage. Cigna and Ipsos found nearly 60% of Americans are not financially prepared for a health event, while 44% have spent at least $1,000 out of pocket after a diagnosis, injury or hospitalization. Fewer than one-third understand that supplemental benefits can also cover everyday costs including groceries, housing or child care.

Meanwhile, half of workers with employer-sponsored medical coverage were offered a high-deductible plan in 2024, versus 38% in 2015. Cigna says employees are more than 2.5 times likelier to enroll when supplemental benefits are available alongside them today.

The launch could strengthen Cigna’s employer offering by making high-deductible plans easier to sell and supplemental coverage easier to use. That may support client retention, new account wins and higher participation in supplemental products, creating incremental premium and fee opportunities over time.

How Are Peers Placed?

UnitedHealth Group Incorporated UNH and Elevance Health, Inc. ELV offer solutions that are similar to the connected-benefits approach. UnitedHealthcare’s Benefit Ally combines medical coverage with accident, critical-illness and hospital-indemnity benefits. For qualifying medical events, the system can automatically identify eligibility and trigger supplemental payouts, reducing or eliminating the need for employees to file separate claims. UnitedHealth also has Benefit Assist, which uses integrated medical-claims data to initiate supplemental claims. Elevance is doing something similar through Anthem. Its Whole Health Connection links Anthem medical coverage with accident, critical-illness and hospital-indemnity plans. When medical claims indicate that a member may qualify for a supplemental benefit, Anthem automatically alerts the member.

CI’s Price Performance, Valuation and Estimates

Shares of Cigna have gained 2% year to date, underperforming the broader industry’s growth of 22.1%.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

From a valuation standpoint, Cigna trades at a forward price-to-earnings ratio of 8.67X, down from the industry average of 16.13X. CI carries a Value Score of A.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

The Zacks Consensus Estimate for Cigna’s 2026 earnings implies 2.3% growth year over year, followed by a 9.5% improvement next year.

Image Source: Zacks Investment Research

The stock currently carries a Zacks Rank #3 (Hold). You can see the complete list of today’s Zacks #1 Rank (Strong Buy) stocks here.

7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days

Just released: Experts distill 7 elite stocks from the current list of 220 Zacks Rank #1 Strong Buys. They deem these tickers "Most Likely for Early Price Pops."

Since 1988, the full list has beaten the market more than 2X over with an average gain of +23.9% per year. So be sure to give these hand picked 7 your immediate attention. 

Want the latest recommendations from Zacks Investment Research? Today, you can download 7 Best Stocks for the Next 30 Days. Click to get this free report

This article originally published on Zacks Investment Research (zacks.com).

Zacks Investment Research