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During National Hispanic Heritage Month, º£½ÇÂÒÂ× is shining the spotlight on Hispanic leaders and employees.

Erick Moncayo joined Fidelis Care, a º£½ÇÂÒÂ× health plan, in 2013 as Assistant Vice President (VP) of Pharmacy and is now VP of Pharmacy Operations. Julian Mena joined º£½ÇÂÒÂ× in 2019 as a coordinator for the grievance team. He is now Supervisor, Grievances and Appeals, for º£½ÇÂÒÂ× Corporate. In the following Q&A, both employees express they value º£½ÇÂÒÂ× for its support of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) and appreciate the employee engagement.

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Q: Tell us about your background, your career at º£½ÇÂÒÂ×, and your current.

ERICK:ÌýI was born in Guayaquil, Ecuador, came to the United States when I was 9 months old and grew up in Queens, New York. I am happily married to my wife Luz and have three children — Rebecca, Robert and Adam. I earned my pharmacy degree at St. John’s University in New York. I have worked at Fidelis Care for close to 10 years. In my current role, I oversee the strategic planning, design, operation and improvement of the organization’s pharmacy services across the care continuum.

JULIAN:ÌýI started with º£½ÇÂÒÂ× in 2019 as a coordinator for our grievance team. My roles before º£½ÇÂÒÂ× were primarily pharmacy focused, so I was nervous pivoting my career into a managed care organization. After a few weeks of getting comfortable within my role, I realized how committed our team and º£½ÇÂÒÂ× is to ensuring our members are taken care of. I quickly transferred over to my current Complaint Tracking Module Team, where I continue as a coordinator assisting members. This is where I started gaining an understanding of how I could have a direct positive impact on how º£½ÇÂÒÂ× manages our members’ healthcare needs. Ìý

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Q: What is the most meaningful part of your job?

ERICK:ÌýWorking collaboratively with fellow colleagues both in office and virtually across New York state to provide innovative care and access to members’ corresponding medications. AnotherÌýmeaningful part of my job is volunteering at local food banks and encouraging others to help. It is a rewarding experience to give back to the community and be able to put a smile on our community members’ faces.Ìý Ìý Ìý Ìý Ìý Ìý ÌýÌý

JULIAN:ÌýThe first thing is assisting our members with their healthcare issues and concerns. Our main focus is to ensure they have the best access for their healthcare needs and making it easily obtainable. Second, is helping my team and º£½ÇÂÒÂ× by listening to our member concerns to better help us grow to provide the best services. Listening to our members and getting down to the root of the matter, gives us the opportunity to improve our processes, our services and grow as a company by providing the best for our members

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Q: How is º£½ÇÂÒÂ×’s approach to DEI different from other companies?

ERICK:ÌýAn unfortunate reality, which became more evident during the COVID-19 pandemic, is that adequate healthcare coverage is disproportionate among communities of color. To no surprise, this leads to worse health outcomes among members of certain socioeconomic groups, including the Hispanic community.Ìý

º£½ÇÂÒÂ× recognizes health disparities and strategically prioritizes programs that address gaps in care to achieve broader coverage for all races and ethnicities. We address barriers, including concerns about coverage and poor health literacy. We also educate our members on how they can empower themselves and minimize these obstacles and rates of events. Our goal is to increase forms of accessibility to coverage for members with any disability and of any race and to improve access to quality care.

JULIAN:ÌýIn my eyes, it’s obvious that º£½ÇÂÒÂ×’s approach and commitment to DEI is at the top of the list. In my current role, having the opportunity to speak and collaborate with people from different backgrounds, with different viewpoints and experiences, is something I have not experienced at other companies. º£½ÇÂÒÂ× and its employees have shown me that my ideas, presence and contributions are truly valued.

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Q: What are your thoughts on the significance of National Hispanic Heritage Month?

ERICK:ÌýThe celebration of National Hispanic Heritage Month goes beyond being a celebration of the history, culture and contributions Latinos and Latinas have made and continue to make to our organization and to our nation. It provides an opportunity for all of us to reflect upon and recognize these collective values and reinforce our commitment to DEI within our organization.

JULIAN:ÌýI think it’s an opportunity to recognize, reflect and celebrate many diverse Hispanic communities. It’s also an opportunity to pay tribute to the previous generations who have positively influenced our nation and society as a whole.