The story
eHealth, Inc. was founded in 1997. The founder, Vip Patel, started the company in Silicon Valley after a personal experience getting food poisoning and lacking health insurance.
In 2006, the company became a public company via an initial public offering. The company opened at the NASDAQ exchange with $14 a share.
In 2010, eHealth acquired PlanPrescriber, Inc. for $28.7 million in cash. PlanPrescriber provides tools to help people choose the right Medicare plan.
In 2013, eHealth, along with other "web brokers", signed deals with Healthcare.gov to enroll subsidy-eligible consumers in the newly approved health plans offered through the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.
In 2014, eHealth acquired the Medicare.com domain name for $4.8 million.
In May 2016, the company appointed Scott Flanders, a director of the company since 2008, as CEO. Former CEO Gary Lauer continued in an advisory role through the end of 2016.
In August 2016, eHealth announced that it had insured 5 million people..
In 2018, eHealth acquired GoMedigap, a consumer acquisition and engagement electronic platform tailored to Medigap insurance.
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In 2019 eHealth announced the development of an Eastern Headquarters in Indianapolis, Indiana.
In 2020, eHealth announced its follow-on public offering of 1,800,000 shares, priced at $115/share, of its common stock, designed to raise an additional $207M. Three days later they announced the closing of the offering, with the 275,000 share option also having been exercised, raising a net proceeds of approximately $227.5 million after deducting underwriting discounts and commissions and the estimated expenses of the offering.
In 2021, eHealth appointed Fran Soistman as CEO. Former CEO Scott Flanders continued in an advisory role through the end of 2021.
In August 2022, eHealth announced that it had begun offering Individual Coverage Health Reimbursement Arrangement (ICHRA) products and services to employer customers as part of its employer-facing benefits platform. The company stated that the offering allowed employers to provide defined contributions toward employees’ individual health insurance purchases rather than traditional group coverage.
In November 2022, eHealth marked its 25th anniversary since its founding in 1997 as an online health insurance marketplace. The company reported that it had connected millions of consumers with individual, family, and Medicare insurance plans through its platform over that period.
In 2023, eHealth introduced a refreshed brand identity and a new consumer-facing spokesperson named “Eve” as part of its marketing strategy for its Medicare and individual insurance platforms. The rebranding was presented as part of efforts to simplify consumer engagement with its insurance comparison tools.
In January 2025, eHealth launched “Iris,” an employer-focused platform designed to support administration of ICHRA-based health benefits. The system was positioned as an end-to-end tool for employers to manage contributions and employee plan selection in the individual insurance market. In April 2025, the company introduced an artificial intelligence–based voice assistant named “Alice” to support customer service interactions and insurance enrollment assistance.
In July 2025, eHealth announced the appointment of Derrick Duke as chief executive officer, succeeding Fran Soistman, who retired from the role. The leadership transition was reported in financial press coverage of the company’s restructuring and strategic focus on Medicare and employer health benefits.
In February 2026, eHealth stated that it was shifting its customer service model to what it described as “lifelong guidance” and continuous support for consumers beyond initial enrollment periods. The company indicated that this approach was intended to emphasize ongoing plan optimization and assistance rather than one-time insurance enrollment transactions.
From Wikipedia’s article on EHealthInsurance, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.6