Fran Soistman, eHealth's chief executive officer, told securities analysts Wednesday that the company has no intention of giving up on its "employer and individual," or E&A, business.

"We're still very bullish on E&I," Soistman said during a conference call the company held to go over results for the latest quarter with the analysts. "We think it's going to play an important role in the future of our company."

EHealth is especially excited about the possibility of selling individual coverage to workers who buy coverage using employer cash provided through individual coverage health reimbursement arrangements, or ICHRAs.

Related: ICHRA market attracts eHealth and big investment firms

"We think that there will likely be a growing number of employers who decide, 'You know what, we're throwing in the towel," Soistman said. "'We're going to go the route of an ICHRA. We're going to provide a stipend and allow our employees to shop in the individual market for a plan that best meets their needs.'"

What it means: Change in the health plan market could create unexpected sales opportunities.

Constrained lifetime value: Constrained lifetime value for health plan members is an estimate of the amount of insurance sales commissions eHealth thinks it can get from a small employer over a 12-month period.

"The estimate is driven by multiple factors, including but not limited to, contracted commission rates, carrier mix, estimated average plan duration, the regulatory environment, and cancellations of insurance plans offered by health insurance carriers with which we have a relationship," the company says in its earnings announcement.

The earnings: EHealth reported $97 million in net income for the fourth quarter on $315 million in revenue, up from $52 million in net income on $248 million in net income for the fourth quarter of 2022.

The Medicare plan market: The federal government made big changes in product rules and reimbursement levels for Medicare Advantage plans in time for the Medicare annual enrollment period.

The Medicare Advantage program gives insurers and managed care companies a way to use a combination of federal subsidy money and enrollee premiums to provide plans that look to the enrollees like alternatives to traditional Medicare.

Many insurers pulled Medicare Advantage plans out of some or all markets before or during the annual enrollment period for 2025 coverage, which ran from Oct. 15, 2024, through Dec. 7, 2024.

Soistman suggested before the enrollment period began that the upheaval could hurt eHealth's Medicare plan sales, but, instead, the upheaval helped sales: The number of approved members increased 39%, year-over-year, to 222,631.

The upheaval likely hurt many brick-and-mortar agencies that have relationships with only a few insurers, but eHealth was in a good position to put the displaced customers in other, commission-paying plans because it has relationships with more than 40 carriers, Soistman said.