Where does AI automation actually reduce friction without creating new risks?
We've spent the past several years deploying AI across our own operations at TELUS Health, not as a proof of concept, but as production infrastructure serving real customers. The results have been instructive, but not always in the ways we expected. What surprised us most might help you think differently about where AI creates genuine value in benefits administration.
When consistency matters more than speed
Here's a challenge every benefits administrator recognizes: your service representatives navigate complex information landscapes. Each client has unique plan designs, coverage rules, eligibility criteria, and policy exceptions. When a member calls with a question, your rep needs to synthesize information across multiple systems, documents, and knowledge bases, all while that member is waiting.
We built a generative AI tool that lets our representatives ask natural language questions and receive responses pulled from the entire client-specific knowledge base. Instead of toggling between five different systems to answer, "Does this plan cover virtual therapy for members in Illinois?" our reps get a digestible, real-time answer sourced from the right documentation.
We expected speed improvements and we got them: 25% reduction in average call handling time, and 5% fewer escalations to supervisors. But the insight that changed how we think about AI in benefits administration was about consistency, not speed.
When your representatives have instant access to accurate, client-specific information, your newest reps can perform like your veterans. The member calling about their mental health coverage can get the same accurate answer whether they reach someone five years into the role or two months in. That consistency is helping to drive our 95% customer satisfaction score. Members trust they'll get the right answer regardless of who picks up the phone or answers a chat message.
The lesson: Consistency matters. Members want accurate answers no matter who is on the other side of the phone or screen. AI is improving accuracy, consistency and speed, and leading benefits administration companies that leverage AI can scale more effectively to serve their clients’ needs.
Where quality assurance actually matters
The member who gets incorrectly denied coverage for their child's therapy sessions doesn't care that it was a rare configuration error. They care that it happened to them. AI-enabled QA helps reduce those failures.
We're using AI-enabled QA tools to help increase test coverage and improve overall quality. This sounds technical, but the business impact is concrete: error rate reduction should always be a primary goal so members get the correct answers for their benefits, so it’s critical that error rates are reduced as much as possible.
When you're managing complex eligibility rules like dependents aging out of coverage, coordination of benefits between spouses, or state variations in what's covered, AI-enabled review can help catch the edge cases that sampling may miss.
The lesson: In benefits administration, reducing error rates is critical to success. AI can help increase test coverage and improve overall quality.
What this means for your benefits strategy
Ask yourself: Where could greater consistency in your operation strengthen member trust? Where do edge-case failures have disproportionate human impact? Where are your experts spending time on routine work instead of complex problem-solving? Those are your AI opportunities.
These operational deployments are just one part of our AI strategy at TELUS Health. Our approach is human‑centric and controlled: we pilot capabilities, stage rollouts, and maintain a human-centric approach. Using the tools ourselves first helps us learn safely and iteratively before expanding access, all while maintaining a privacy-first approach.
See how AI can deliver social benefits for a friendly future
TELUS Health combines ISO-certified, privacy-first AI technology with international governance standards to help administrators make better decisions while maintaining member trust and regulatory compliance.
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