The Future of Insurance – Dr. Christy Lane & Laura McDonald, Co-Founders of Flora Fertility

Guest Bio

This episode featured the co-founders of a first-of-its-kind fertility insurance solution called Flora Fertility.

Dr. Christy Lane, President and Co-Founder
Dr. Christy Lane is global leader of InsurTech, an investor, founder and award-winning health scientist with expertise in AI, digital health, and wearable devices. Dr. Lane is the Co-Founder of Flora Fertility, the Stanford Wearable Health Lab, as well as Founder and former CEO of Vivametrica. Dr. Lane is also a Venture Partner with IA Capital, an InsurTech/fintech venture firm in New York. Dr. Lane has built her career in women’s health research since the 90’s, and is blazing a new path forward to combine critical components of wearable tech to help inform insurance policy to make fertility treatments more accessible. As a mom of 3, Dr. Lane has gone through IVF herself and deeply understands the emotional and financial challenges of treatment. She has been recognized as Top 40 Under 40 in Calgary, Female Founders of Insuretech Winner and Top 20 Women in Tech.

Laura McDonald, CEO and Co-Founder
Laura McDonald is the Co-Founder of Flora Fertility, the first individually-owned insurance solution for fertility and women's health. She formerly founded, scaled, and sold Canada's largest financial media company focused on women and wealth and is passionate about educating women about financial freedom and helping them achieve those goals. She has guided product wholesaling for a major insurance company and helped scale a DTC AI model in the e-commerce space to have global market adoption across 100+ countries. She is a mother of four and the author of two best-selling personal finance books and a former media personality in the financial sector. 

Highlights from the Show

The interview discusses the innovative approach of Flora Fertility, a company co-founded by Christy Lane and Laura McDonald. The company focuses on providing individually owned private insurance coverage for fertility, aiming to address the high demand and financial burden associated with fertility treatments. The discussion highlights the prevalence of fertility issues, with statistics indicating that one in six people may require fertility treatment, a figure recognized by the World Health Organization as a global health issue in 2023.

Flora Fertility's insurance product is designed to be accessible and affordable, targeting women aged 20 to 34 with policies ranging from $15 to $70 per month, offering up to $50,000 in coverage for fertility treatments. The founders emphasize the importance of community and education, aiming to create a supportive environment for policyholders that includes perks, benefits, and educational resources.

The episode also touches on the broader implications of women's health and the need for more investment and innovation in this area. It highlights the potential for Flora Fertility to change perceptions of insurance among younger generations and to serve as a gateway for other insurance products. The founders' personal experiences with infertility and their professional backgrounds in healthcare and entrepreneurship are key drivers behind the company's mission.

Key Points:

1. Innovative Insurance Solution: Flora Fertility offers a unique insurance product specifically for fertility treatments, addressing a significant gap in the market.

2. Global Health Issue: Fertility issues affect one in six people globally, as recognized by the World Health Organization in 2023, highlighting the importance of accessible fertility treatment options.

3. Affordable Coverage: The insurance policies are designed to be affordable, with monthly premiums ranging from $15 to $70, providing up to $50,000 in coverage.

4. Target Demographic: The primary target audience for these policies is women aged 20 to 34, a demographic that can greatly benefit from early and proactive fertility planning.

5. Community and Education: Flora Fertility emphasizes the importance of building a supportive community for policyholders, offering educational resources and additional benefits.

6. Broader Implications for Women's Health: The initiative underscores the need for more investment and innovation in women's health, potentially reshaping perceptions of insurance among younger generations.

7. Founders' Motivation: The personal experiences of the founders with infertility, combined with their professional expertise in healthcare and entrepreneurship, drive the mission and vision of Flora Fertility.

This episode is brought to you by The Future of Insurance book series (future-of-insurance.com) from Bryan Falchuk.

Follow the podcast at future-of-insurance.com/podcast for more details and other episodes.

Music courtesy of Hyperbeat Music, available to stream or download on Spotify, Apple Music, and Amazon Music and more.