MY ROLE: I led the UX team end to end, from initial research and user flows through design, presentation, prototyping, developer handoff, and usability testing in partnership with our internal research team.
UnitedHealthcare Medicare Shopping / Online Enrollment
Primary challenges to solve for:
A higher level of enrollments
Each piece is made with attention to detail, ensuring quality you can trust and a finish you’ll be proud to show off.
01
Simplify the experience to reduce drop off rates
From texture to tone, we consider the small things—because they’re what make a product truly stand out.
02
Enable users with an increased sense of confidence
Our products aren’t just nice to look at—they’re built to integrate into your life with ease, purpose, and durability.
03
Challenge
UnitedHealthcare’s Medicare Advantage online enrollment tool was attracting strong traffic, but application completion rates were declining.
While enrollment starts continued to grow year over year, fewer users were finishing the process, especially on mobile. At the same time, the audience had broadened to include users with varying levels of technical comfort and different accessibility needs.
Several issues were contributing to friction:
A complex, high-stakes process
Applying for Medicare coverage requires users to provide detailed personal, medical, and eligibility information. Many users were unfamiliar with the process and uncertain about what information they would need.
Lack of clarity and confidence during the application flow
User testing revealed participants often didn’t know where they were in the process or how much work remained. This uncertainty led to hesitation and abandonment.
Fragmented interaction patterns
The enrollment flow had evolved over time using older design systems and inconsistent UI patterns, which created a disjointed experience across steps.
Mobile usability gaps
Traffic from mobile devices had increased significantly, but the experience had not been optimized for smaller screens or touch interactions.
Diverse user scenarios
Personas ranged from newly eligible individuals turning 65 to caregivers applying on behalf of family members, as well as existing members comparing plans or switching coverage. Each group approached enrollment with different levels of knowledge and confidence.
My UX team’s goal was to increase enrollment completion rates while improving clarity, usability, and trust throughout the application journey.
Approach
Grounding the experience in real user needs
Prepare users
Users wanted to prepare before starting so they wouldn’t get stuck mid-application.
“ It’s always helpful when someone gives you a heads-up to get something ready with a little advance notice. ”
Show progress
Participants struggled to understand where they were in the process.
“ I’m not totally sure where I am in it. Maybe about half way through? I didn’t see anything that shows how far along you are.”
Assist users
Accessibility usability improvements like formatting assistance or contextual help significantly.
“It would have been easier if the letters were capitalized automatically so I didn’t have to do it myself.”
For example, participants responded positively when the experience explained what documents they would need before starting, such as a Medicare card or insurance details.
These insights shaped design priorities across the entire flow.
Re-mapping the end-to-end enrollment journey
Key benefits of the flow redesign included:
Identifying steps where users most commonly abandoned the process
Reducing redundant pages
Clarifying the sequence of required information
Creating alignment between design, product, and engineering teams
The final structure organized the experience into clear stages:
Personal information
Eligibility verification
Contact information
Additional coverage details
Review and submit
This structure helped establish a predictable rhythm that users could follow confidently from start to finish.
Establishing clear page templates
To improve consistency and scalability, we created reusable page patterns that defined the structure of the entire experience.
Welcome page
Introduced the process and helped users prepare by outlining what information they would need.
Section landing pages
Signaled the beginning of a new stage and reinforced progress.
Input pages
Focused, task-oriented screens where users entered or confirmed information.
Review pages
Allowed users to verify their entries before submission.
Integrating the design system
The redesign aligned the enrollment experience with the company’s design system, bringing modern UI components and accessibility improvements into the product.
Design system elements introduced included:
standardized alerts and notifications
improved progress indicators
contextual help popovers
accessible form controls
consistent visual hierarchy
By aligning with the broader system, the experience gained both visual cohesion and engineering efficiency.
Increasing transparency and reassurance
Healthcare enrollment can feel intimidating. The redesign added cues to boost user confidence.
Key improvements:
Progress visibility: persistent indicator shows users’ place in the process.
Preparation: “Before you begin” notes ~10-minute duration and required documents.
Contextual help: info icons explain complex fields without leaving the flow.
Formatting: fields auto-format inputs to reduce errors.
User testing showed these changes increased comfort completing the application.
Accessibility and inclusive design
Because Medicare applicants include older adults and individuals with varying technical abilities, accessibility was a critical consideration.
The redesigned experience followed the branded accessibility guidelines, including:
keyboard-accessible help elements
descriptive field guidance
clear labels and instructions
accessible error messaging
These changes ensured the tool was usable for a broader range of applicants.
Results
✅ Impact at a glance
Increased enrollment completion rates
Reduced drop-off throughout the application process
Improved mobile usability
Greater user confidence during a complex healthcare decision
The redesigned enrollment experience produced measurable improvements in both usability and business outcomes.
Improved completion rates
Simplifying the flow and increasing transparency helped reverse the decline in start-to-complete conversions.
Reduced application abandonment
Clear progress indicators and preparation guidance removed uncertainty that previously caused users to drop off.
Better mobile performance
Mobile-friendly layouts and simplified input flows improved usability for the growing number of mobile applicants.
Higher user confidence and satisfaction
User testing showed participants appreciated:
knowing what to prepare before starting
being able to track their progress
quick access to contextual explanations
These changes helped transform the enrollment experience from a confusing process into a guided journey that felt manageable and trustworthy.