Highmark Extends Hiring Initiative to 2021 That Began in 2020.

Welcome to Disability Matters with your host Joyce Bender. All comments, views, and opinions expressed on the show are solely those of the host, guest, and callers. Now the host of Disability Matters, here's Joyce Bender.

Hi everyone and welcome to the show, to everyone in the United States and around the world. Around the world, let me tell you what, China, I am really impressed at the number of listeners on this show, and Australia, who would think that would happen? And now we have 18 listening countries listening to the show, which brings me to my special shoutouts. As everyone knows, when an embassy somewhere in the world is looking for an expert on the employment of people with disabilities, the State Department frequently calls me and asked me if I will go to that country, which I am very honored that I have, to many. So, a special shout-out first to Richard Roberts. Oh my God, is he awesome! He is in Okinawa, he is with the State Department. I first met him when I went to South Korea and he was at the Embassy in South Korea, which by the way, Gangyong in South Korea, best wishes to you. But Richard, worked out us having a radio show from Japan a few months ago. And guess what? There's another one coming up in June, and it will be with groups speaking. Actually, the two people speaking are experts in sign language for the deaf in Japan.. And I'm so excited, but wow, is he a great friend and a great advocate for people with disabilities. And the same goes for Cheryl Harris in Tunisia, who I had the pleasure of doing a Zoom presentation training for right from Beaver, PA. How about that? And I love her. And then to Veniamin in Kazakhstan, another great friend of mine, but I must say, special shout out to Yoshiko Dart. You know, I do this on every show for years. Why? Because Yoshiko's husband was the great late Justin Dart, who died many years ago, and Justin was known as the general of the ADA. You know, like if you see that famous photograph of President George W. Bush when he signed the Americans with Disabilities Act in front of the White House in the lawn, and he is seated up there by the president. He is seated by the president with his cowboy hat on. So, you know why I do this? Like, we don't have any history. You go outside, who is Harriet Tubman? Who is Martin Luther King Jr.? Who is many people? No idea. I mean, they know all of those. But when you ask, who is Justin Darton? No one knows. So, you know, we got to work on that with our history books. So that is something that we are working on. And our sponsor, our lead sponsor for the past several years has been Highmark. No surprise to anyone because Highmark, if it weren't for Highmark, I wouldn't be talking to you right now about disability employment. It's amazing how one decision one person makes can change so many lives, and that is why I am thrilled to have as my guest today Karen Hanlon, who is the Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer running Highmark, and let me just tell you, she is absolutely the real deal. She is with Highmark Health, and she has stood behind me since I've known her on employing people with disabilities. Karen, it is an absolute pleasure to have you as a guest today. You are now known nationally in the healthcare arena, but also in the disability arena. Disability community for the work you and Highmark have done. So welcome to the show.

Thank you, Joyce. Thanks for inviting me.

Karen, maybe we could start by, since we have listeners around the world, would you mind sharing your story? You know, for example, why did you pursue an academic career in accounting? Let's hear your story.

Sure, yeah. I grew up in Western Pennsylvania and have never gone far from there. Went to college about an hour and a half north of Pittsburgh. And it might be, you know, a little bit of a lesson in when at first you don't succeed, try and try again. I actually went to college to be a math major and I was going to be an actuary. Took my calculus class freshman year and found myself failing it. Part of the way through the first year and decided, well, I can either fail the class or drop the class. And so I dropped it and figured probably wasn't going to be a viable option to be a math major if you had to drop your freshman calculus class. So I was always good at math, really liked math, and, and so accounting seemed like a very logical choice from there. And so ended up pursuing a career in accounting, came out of college and went to work for one of the large multinational firms KPMG, Peat Marwick, and after 5 years at KPMG joined Highmark in 1997. And I've been at Highmark ever since, much of that time in the finance division in different roles, uh, leading up to becoming the CFO for Highmark Health, our parent company, in 2014. And then in 2018, I shifted over to be the Chief Operating Officer of Highmark Health. So, it's been a fun career, a lot of great experiences, and certainly my studies in accounting served me well. It's worked out well in terms of the progression that I've had and the things that I've been able to participate in.

Wow, Karen, I bet, first of all, this shows you what she's like. She starts by telling us about this class she failed. Now she's number 2 at Highmark. And I have to ask you, Karen, when you were first went to Highmark, did you ever in a million years think you would be number 2 running Highmark?

No, of course not. I didn't think that far ahead, you know. You just kind of do what you're doing each day and, you know, I think have goals and aspirations. But at that point, I never would have had a goal or aspiration aligned with, you know, the career that I've been able to have at this company. It's just been a great place to work. And I've been really privileged to have the career that I've had there.

I was going to ask this question later on, but I'm going to ask this right now. You know, I have found, I don't think I've, it's amazing actually how the leadership at Highmark is so wonderful. I mean, really, I don't know how many corporations you would go to where not one, not two, but the leadership across the board, you know, from Deb Reich Johnson to Cindy Hundorfean to Gary, McMullig and Gary Dick to Larry Kleiman and of course, David Holmberg. It is amazing to find a company where everyone seems— how can I say this— similar when it comes to kindness, kindness. Why do you think that is, Karen? How is that possible?

Joyce Bender: You know, and Joyce, it's been that way for as long as I've been there. That's what attracted me to Highmark, the people. I had the pleasure when I was at KPMG of working on the Highmark account, so I knew the people and felt like I would be comfortable there in making that next step in my career. And so it was the culture and the people that attracted me there in 1997, and frankly, been the culture and the people that have kept me there that long. And you said it well, you know, I think, I mean, it starts, for me at least, I think it starts with the mission of the company and the goals that we have that are tied to that mission. You know, when you're in the healthcare space, you're in it to make a difference in people's lives. And that's what we're doing every day, or what we're trying to do every day. And we've just been very blessed that we have been able to build and maintain a culture that is very committed to that mission and attracts talent that keeps that going and makes it enjoyable to go to work every day. So, you know, you've told me many times that you've been through, geez Joyce, 5 CEOs at Highmark now, probably 6 maybe, that, you know, repeatedly have said to you, "Yes, we're in, what do you need?" And that's just one topic, you know, I think culturally it's just been embedded in the company and it's been able, that culture has been able to endure.

Yeah, I mean, that's true what you just said. I told this story today on LinkedIn, but if you did not see it, and as you all know, I'm living with epilepsy, and my whole crusade in life is the employment of people with disabilities. Sadly, it's getting worse. It used to be 70% of people with disabilities were not counted in the workforce, and since the pandemic, it's getting a little higher. And I always tell people, You know, don't wait until something happens to you or your family when you're suddenly on board with this, because people with disabilities deserve to work just like everyone deserves to work. But this is— I used to be an executive search, and this was my dream, my mission. I wanted to do this. And where did I go? Hi, Mark. And I told them, listen, Bill, the CEO, I want to have you bring on board 6 subcontractors, entry-level. They were from a program at community college. And keep them on contract for 3 years. That is, of course, unless they don't do a good job. Now, I just want to tell you, that was 1995. You know what that means? The ADA was ratified, signed in '90, ratified in '93. Can you believe that that far back a company would say yes in one day? I always say, boy, if I could get everyone to do that, just think what would be happening in this country. But were it not for Highmark, there wouldn't be a Bender. And Karen's right, after Bill Lowery, John Brouse, after John Brouse, Ken Mulaney, after Ken Mulaney, Bill Winkenwerder, and then David. And David Holmberg has taken it even to a higher level. So that is remarkable when you think about that. I guess it just was, you know, some companies have a mission, but they don't have that culture. So I guess it's just always been like that, Karen, what you said. And I guess you joined, you joined because, as you said, because of that, because of the people. But your current position, you said Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. What does that mean? Again, for all of our listeners, what does that— what does that mean?

Yeah, yeah, so, you know, Highmark's primary business, as I mentioned earlier, is healthcare. We have, we are a Blue Cross Blue Shield plan in 4 states, and then we also have a large provider system in Western Pennsylvania called Allegheny Health Network. And then those 2 primary businesses are surrounded by a variety of other businesses that help to diversify our portfolio. Many of them doing business nationally. But when we think about, you know, the business of healthcare, our objectives around healthcare as we think about the next 5 years are really to transform and fundamentally change the healthcare model to make it more simple, more proactive, more personalized in the search of improving health outcomes and making healthcare more affordable. And so, my job as the Chief Operating Officer of Highmark is to really drive that strategy forward, working with a variety of people, working very closely with the folks at Allegheny Health Network, of course, but also working closely with many other providers that we partner with when we think about achieving the goals that I referenced. Also working closely with Deb Rice-Johnson, who leads our health plan business. And I have direct accountability for things things like data and analytics and technology, operations, our product and solutions group, our provider partnerships area. So, a variety of areas kind of roll into my responsibilities in trying to move forward into what we call the Living Health Model, that transformed model of healthcare. So, it's It's really exciting every day. You know, no two days are the same, which I love about my job. There are days where I sit back at the end of the day and think, my goodness, like the variety of topics that I covered in a day. Never, never, ever would I have thought that, you know, I would have had the privilege to, you know, cover the sorts of topics that I do in a day. And we're doing very meaningful work. Work. So, as I said earlier, love the people that I work with and love the mission of the company and are spending, you know, I'm spending my time each day really trying to move those things forward.

Well, you are in this powerful role at Highmark. You were mentioning about the different lines of business. Like, how large is Highmark? I mean, how many hospitals, the size, you know, how large is it?

Yeah, yeah, so we just this spring in March closed an affiliation with a company called HealthNow, which is the Blue Cross Blue Shield plan in Western New York and Northeastern New York. With that affiliation closed, we're about $21 billion in revenue. 4.6 million health insurance members that really live throughout the nation, but we write that coverage through Pennsylvania, Delaware, West Virginia, and New York. And as I mentioned earlier, you know, our portfolio includes not only that health insurance business and Allegheny Health Network, but a large national dental company called United Concordia, a large national stop-loss and reinsurance company, which is called HM Insurance Group, and then a technology company where we market and sell our back-office insurance technology to other insurers. That company is called HM Health Solutions. So, a fairly diversified portfolio, and, you know, as I mentioned a couple of times, our main focus is in the 4 states that we serve, but we have companies that are operating across the nation as well.

And how many employees do you have now, including AHM?

Yeah, including AHM, we have about 35,000 employees.

Wow, long way from when I first knew Highmark.

That is amazing. Yeah, me too, Joyce. Yeah, I mean, me too. You know, I can remember when we were doing things and, you know, talking about 2.5 million members. And now we're at 4.6 million members. We're the fourth largest Blue Cross Blue Shield plan in the nation. And, you know, the amount of growth that we've seen at the company through acquisitions and affiliations and also, you know, just building capabilities that we then are able to build into businesses. Has been, you know, really fun to watch and be a part of.

That is great. Hey, I see we have a caller on the line. Is our caller there? Where is— let's see, Maria. Maria, are you on the line?

Hi, Joyce, it's Maria Town from the American Association of People with Disabilities.

Hi, Maria, how are you?

I'm doing well, how are you?

I'm good. It's nice to hear from the CEO of this, our large policy organization in D.C., where, by the way, we just had that fabulous gala that even President Biden attended. So, Maria, thank you for calling. I love to be on your board.

Yes, this is Maria Joyce. We're so grateful for your long leadership at AAPD, currently our vice chair, former board chair yourself. I heard that Karen Hanlon from Highmark was going to be on your show today, and I just wanted to call and really commend her and all of Highmark's leadership for committing to hire 31 people with disabilities for the 31st anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act. Companies can do all kinds of things to make commitments towards inclusion, but where the rubber meets the road is actually hiring people, and Highmark is doing that, and it's just really incredible. So Karen, I wanted to say thank you.

Oh, thank you, Maria. It's good to hear from you again. Yeah, well, you know as well as I do that first of all, when Joyce comes into your office, whatever it is, you're not gonna be able to say no. That's right. So for us, yeah, we all know that. For us, that started last year. I think Joyce approached David Holmberg and said, hey, you know, how about 30 people for the 30th anniversary? And we did that. And so of course we had to, you know, outdo ourselves and go for 31 for 31. And at least as I was talking to Larry Kliman, our Chief Human Resources Officer, earlier today, he told me we are just about one-third of the way through that goal. And we're about one-third of the way through the year. So hopefully that means we're on track and we're going to meet the objective here.

Yeah, you are on track. And Maria, you know, you used to work work at the White House. You were at the White House appointed with President Obama, and you were with the Department of Labor. But, you know, as the CEO, and might I add, young CEO, Maria, I think you will agree with me that there aren't very many companies this well known nationally when it comes to employment.

That's right, Joyce. I think, you know, one of the things that I always love to see is when a company commits to hiring people with disabilities across their enterprise. So it's not solely, you know, oh, we're going to hire people with disabilities in these jobs, you know, in a warehouse, which we see pretty often. A company is going to look at all of the jobs that they have available and figure out if there are candidates and potential applicants with disabilities that are a good fit for jobs at every level of management. And that's one of the things that I really appreciate about what Highmark is doing. They're not just saying, "We're going to hire 31 people with disabilities in this specific role that we have." created to basically segregate people with disabilities. You're looking across this whole enormous company, and that's, that's really exciting.

Yeah, it is. Not 31 people and they're all in the data center, which is— yeah, I, I know what you mean. And that is often how it is. Well, no, they don't do that, and they hire people at all levels. And here's an example: Hey, Maria, you know Veronica Villalobos, right? Yeah. From, well, as you know, Maria, she used to be in a lead position at OPM, and she is now in a lead position at Highmark and identifies as a person with a disability. So I think that, as vice president, and that's when it's great when it's at all levels. But AAPD.com, I don't know, Maria, do you have that gala? Is it recorded? Is it out somewhere yet or not?

It's not out somewhere yet. We are still— we're making sure that the caption—

Caption, right.

Out into the universe, but it will— you can see at least the speakers from our program at AAPD.com/webinars. /aapd/gala and learn more about all of our work at aapd.com and on social media @aapd.

Okay, you can make a donation today. Hey, Maria, thank you for calling in.

Thank you, Joyce, and thank you again, Karen. I hope you both have a great day.

Thank you, Maria. Good talking to you. Take care.

Thank you, Maria. And we are very blessed to have Maria as the CEO at AAPD. You know, we have the largest corporations such as Highmark, AT&T, Northrop Grumman, all these, all these huge companies, Wells Fargo on our board and/or our leadership roundtable. And I think, Karen, this gives you an idea of how well-known Highmark is.

Yeah, yeah. No, it's great, Joyce, and we appreciate your support certainly in everything that you do to partner with us to help us to get better every day. You know, David Holmberg says all the time, we aren't perfect, we don't do everything right, but we do try to get better every day, and we appreciate your partnership in that regard.

Oh, well, I'll go on record for saying when it comes to disability employment, you are the best company I have ever worked with. And that is why you owe me another mug. I need another Highmark mug. I somehow damaged my Highmark mug. Uh, but I'm being serious, listeners. This company is without question I think everyone knows. People think I work for Highmark, but I love Highmark. I do. I admit it. But they deserve it. Highmark deserves it. And now it's time for our news break. As everyone knows, we have a news break on the half hour. The only source in the United States, actually in the world, that provides On the half hour every week, a news break on what's going on that impacts people with disabilities. And we are so fortunate to have as our newscaster for Advocacy Matters, uh, Perry Jude Radesik, CEO of Disability Rights PA. Perry, are you with us?

Joyce, I am, and may I also offer my congratulations to Karen?

Yes, thank you, Karen.

Well, I know you, Karen, you know—

go ahead, I'm sorry, no, go ahead.

No, we at Disability Rights Pennsylvania really appreciate the work of Highmark and the ongoing commitment to employing people with disabilities We work and give legal advice to people who are seeking to overcome barriers to work. And really to have a company like Highmark and also based in Western Pennsylvania that reaches so far just means so much to us here in Pennsylvania. And it's incredibly important, and we're so grateful, Karen, for what you do and for what Highmark does.

Well, thank you. It's, it's our, our pleasure and our privilege to be able to do it.

So, Perry, what's up? Do you have a news, a news break for us here?

We do. Uh, there's some confusion as to whether the Centers for Disease Control national moratorium on evictions is still in effect. Here's why. There have been at least 6 court challenges to those moratorium protections across the country, to the eviction protections. And even recently, just earlier this month, a federal judge in the District of Columbia ruled that the CDC order exceeded the agency's statutory authority, and the judge applied the ruling nationwide.

Why?

But here's what's been happening. The U.S. Department of Justice appealed that case and is appealing other cases. So really, for most of the country, the CDC order is still in place pending the outcome of these appeals. Now, if we remember, the original ban on evictions for renters was put in place, uh, during the COVID-19 national emergency under the Trump administration, and that happened on September 1st, 2020. Now, the CDC extended that national ban on evictions through June 30th, 2021. So here's what's important. First, if you need the help of that eviction protection from the CDC, You have to qualify. And on our website, we have the certification form from the CDC to make sure that you meet those qualifications, because you must provide the landlord with that certification. The certification look— and qualifications look at income, inability to pay rent, trying to pay rent, making your best effort to get government assistance, and then certifying that you would be homeless, go to a homeless shelter, or move in with others if you are evicted. So there are qualifications for this protection. There's also money coming into the states to help renters. It's called the Emergency Rental Assistance Program, and in Pennsylvania, it's administered through all 67 of our counties. We also have information about the Emergency Rental Assistance Program in Pennsylvania on our website at disabilityrightspa.org. We know advocacy matters, so does self-advocacy. So if someone needs information on whether that eviction ban is in place for their state or information on whether you qualify Please reach out to one of our protection and advocacy agencies like Disability Rights Pennsylvania or your local legal aid office. Again, we have all of this information with our advocacy matters segment for today. Just visit us at disabilityrightspa.org.

Oh, thank you so much, Perry. This is very important. Because as you well know, disability and poverty go hand in hand. So make sure you go to that site if this impacts you, and, you know, review what she said. And Perry, thank you so much for keeping us up to date and providing the news today.

Thank you, Joyce, and thank you, Karen. Bye.

Thank you.

Hey, uh, Karen, hi Mark and AHN. Together you have done a tremendous job getting vaccines out to the public. As a matter of fact, many of my employees were at Dick's and just raved about how well they were treated and how this was so organized. But you know, this is an ongoing thing. I wanted you to tell everyone a story. You told me a story about some older woman you met. I think she was in a wheelchair. I know she was older. I think she was Black. And would you mind sharing that story? Because I know that really impacted you.

Yeah, yeah, sure. You know, as you said, Joyce, we've done a lot of vaccination clinics between Allegheny Health Network and Highmark. We've done over 325,000 vaccinations through this COVID-19 crisis, and we've partnered with a variety of organizations to do that. You referenced Dick's Sporting Goods, where some of your employees went for their vaccination. We've partnered with the Pittsburgh Pirates in doing events at PNC Park, with the Monroeville Convention Center, Erie Insurance Arena, and and others. But I was volunteering one day at a clinic we were having at PNC Park and I was working the exit and this was early on in the vaccination so we were really hitting the most vulnerable community. It was, you know, people age 75 and above generally with some sort of health conditions. And so we had a number of people that were in wheelchairs and and this one lady had finished getting her shot, finished the observation period, and was ready to get back in her car and go home. And so she was in a wheelchair, we wheeled her out, and I was standing there with her waiting for her family member who was coming to pick her up to pull their car up so that she could get in. And we started talking and she said, you know, I'm so happy that I was here and able to get the vaccination. And I said, well, you know, that's great. We're happy that you were able to make it as well. And she said, you know, I had to do this not for myself but for my family. And as you said, she was probably— I think she told me she was 80. She was a Black woman and she said, you know, I had to do this for my kids my grandkids to show them that it was okay. That it's okay to be vaccinated and that it's the right thing to do. I didn't really do it for myself. I did it for them. And, you know, just when you hear some of the challenges around the vaccination rate and the reluctance that people have, it just, you know, it impacted me because I thought, gosh, like you know, how selfless, you know, like the reason she's there doing it. And we heard a lot of stories like that through the vaccination efforts. A lot of people that, you know, like many that we both know have not seen family members in a year, you know, have not seen grandchildren that were born and so on. And so Thankfully, we seem to be navigating this and, you know, trying to get back to some sort of a normal state. And, you know, now we have to make sure that we're finding all of the communities that have not yet been able to access the vaccine as readily, that we find the people that, you know, have not been able to get to a vaccination clinic and and get them vaccinated. And we've had that as a priority throughout our efforts. We committed from the very beginning that we were allocating at least 15% of our vaccine supply to marginalized populations, and we partnered with a variety of entities to help us in that regard. So we'll keep working at that, but there have been a lot of impactful moments, and my story of my conversation with this woman is just one of them.

And very powerful. You know, um, yeah, Karen, I am fully vaccinated, as I think all of my employees, now that I think about it, are fully vaccinated, which is such a wonderful thing. But I just want to encourage anyone listening to the show, you know, Nothing bad is going to happen to you if you are vaccinated. Something bad can happen to you if you aren't vaccinated. So make sure you're looking at that the right way. You know, I care about everyone, and I would just encourage you, if you are not vaccinated, you need to, you need to do that. And you know, Caring COVID is still here. I know at Highmark, how has COVID impacted Highmark?

Yeah, wow, what a learning situation this has been. You know, probably like most other employers, one of our very early activities was to get all of our employees home and to enable them to work working from home. Of course, our non-clinical folks, our, you know, doctors and nurses and radiologists, physician assistants, and so on, continued to go to work throughout. But we made a major push to get our non-clinical folks working from home. You know, clearly with having a provider system within our complement of businesses, we had a very up-close and personal impact associated with COVID fighting through early on the many trials around getting the necessary PPE, you know. And we were fortunate that through our business partnerships, we were able to at all times have the supplies that we needed. We were fortunate that in some of those business partnerships, we were able to do some very unique and innovative things. Some of the learnings, when you think about the N95 masks, we were able to partner with MSA Safety, which is a Pittsburgh company, to actually take one of their products and use it as an N100 mask within our, within our clinical facilities. So our folks had even greater protection than what they would have gotten from the N95 masks. And then of course, you know, we turned to the community. I talked about the vaccination efforts. But prior to reaching that, we spent, you know, over $750 million in support of our insurance members, the providers that we serve, and the communities that we serve. In a variety of ways. You know, some of that was increasing coverage and benefits for our insurance members. Some of it was doing advance payments to providers and grants, community grants to local organizations such as food banks. You know, we all saw the lines at the food banks on the news, and—

Yeah.

—you know, we certainly had an interest in being a part of doing something about that. You know, I mentioned our dental coverage. Company earlier. Our dental company, you know, just the unique things or creative things that people think about. Our dental company has a massive network of dentals— or dentists, rather, that they work with. And so, they were able to tap into their network of dentists and have those dentists also help by providing PPE for the medical caregivers. And assisting at times also in the vaccination efforts. And then of course, you know, all the things that we had to do at AHN to get ready and to be able to execute as well as our doctors and nurses and caregivers there have. You know, things as simple as making sure that we had the right refrigeration for the vaccines when they came in, but all of the logistics around navigating in a clinical setting when you have, you know, a pandemic going on. It was just an incredible amount of work, and they did an amazing job. I think, you know, we clearly learned some things through it. I think as a nation, we certainly learned that we can probably employ greater flexibility in terms of many of the jobs that people work and in allowing people to do more from home and free up part of their time. You heard me talk about the partnership that we have with MSA Safety around N100 masks. That's something that isn't just applicable through COVID-19, but will be applicable for, you know, many, many years beyond that. You know, certainly there was a lot of disruption in the hospitals in the early days, because they were filling up with COVID cases. And so you had to keep the less acute cases out of the hospitals so that you had the beds available. Telehealth, you know, I'm sure you've heard in the news, telehealth just took off, you know. And one of the things that we saw was that it took off in particular in mental health services. And in fact, Even though in many cases, you know, in most cases, people now feel comfortable going back into their doctor's office or back into the hospital, and maybe as consumers aren't as— don't feel as much of a need to engage through telehealth as opposed to in-person visits, we're finding that the mental health telehealth has actually not subsided, that, you know, those seeking that service have continued to engage even after they could have either, you know, abandoned that or gone back into the actual clinical setting. And I think that, you know, that is yet another learning for us, that it made accessible a service for a set of people that otherwise didn't quite feel as comfortable going into an office somewhere. And so that, you know, clearly is one of the things that we will build into our clinical models now and learn from and be able to do more and better in terms of the customers that seek services from us. So, there was a ton of learning through this, and much of it, you know, relates to things that we will continue to benefit from for years to come.

You're right. Like people with disabilities getting to work from home. There's an example right there. There were many things that happened. But hey, we have a caller on the line.

Jill, are you on the line? Yes, I am.

Hello, Jill Houghton, CEO of Disability:IN.

How are you? Hi, Joyce Bender. It's such a privilege to be here with one of our very first certified disability-owned businesses at to have the opportunity to listen to you and Karen speak. Karen, we are just so grateful for leaders like you and for companies like Highmark. You are nationally known for your work in this disability inclusion space.

Thank you, Jill. It's a pleasure to meet you over the phone, and thank you for the work that you do. And, Jill—

You know, thanks, Joyce Bender.

Don't they participate in the Disability Equality Index, right? Highmark?

Well, they not—

not only does Highmark participate, but you're one of our founding partners. So, the Disability Equality Index, which is a joint venture with the American Association of People with Disabilities, Disabilities was actually founded as a result of partners like Highmark, and you have been a top-scoring company recognized as the best place to work for disability inclusion since, since the beginning, which really speaks volumes. And I think your actions speak even louder with your commitment to to include and to hire, to retain, to promote employees with disabilities means a lot. So thank you for your leadership.

Thank you. And you know, Jill, I've known you for a long time. You know Tony Coelho and Ted Kennedy Jr. and many of the same people that I know. But being that you've been in this field for a long time, How many companies do you know where they have hired this many people with disabilities from the top down and stood behind me to get started?

Very few.

Which is sad. It's sad, but it is true.

There's an opportunity. We're just scratching the surface, right? We're just starting to scratch the surface, but it's leaders like Highmark that bring other companies out because they want to know what you're doing, and there's that competitive spirit around disability inclusion. So it not only means a lot that you work in this space, but it means a lot that you talk about it, because when you're out there and you're demonstrating where you're at on this journey, it causes your competitors to want to get in the game.

Yep. No doubt. Yeah. And I think things like the, the DEI score that you referenced, Jill, that, you know, we look at every year, of course, when it comes out and make sure that we're still doing well in all the different areas that matter is just one example of approaches that companies can take to kind of assess themselves and assess where they're doing well and where they can do better. And all of that information becomes helpful in kind of thinking about the approaches that you're taking and what else you could be doing.

Well, Joe, I want to say I can't thank you enough for what you do because I've known you since Seattle. Knowing you a long time, and you are— wow, Disability In sold out every year where people come to that conference and they don't even have enough tables. And right now, still, you can attend virtually. And when is that, Jill? When is your conference this year?

We are virtually July 12th through the 15th, and you can register online at disabilityin.org. And then we will look forward to seeing you again in person July 18th through the 21st of 2022 when we're all coming together in Dallas, Texas.

I was just going to ask you, can you tell me the secret of where we're going to be? And there you told everyone, so now we know. Dallas, Texas. Okay, well, Jill, yes. I can't wait till we see everyone in Dallas, Texas, and you continue rocking it and have a great day. Thank you so much. So, Karen, look at you. You are so just awesome and dynamic and kind and have such integrity. You know what gets me? You call people at I don't want to use the word lower level, but at a— I mean, at a company position-wise, and it's hard to get people to call you back. Then you call Karen Hanley, she calls you right back. Why is that? I've always wondered, why is that? But that is what it is. But anyway, I don't know either. But Karen, you obviously have a role model that has impacted you, or you wouldn't be who you are today. So who would that be?

You know, um, it's interesting, Joyce. I don't think I would, I would point to any one person, you know. Um, I think there are pieces and parts that I would take from a variety of people. And, you know, we were talking earlier, I've worked with some amazing leaders at Highmark, and I've taken a lot from those people. And, you know, have kind of tucked those things into my head and try to bring them back out at the right time. Certainly, for all of us, right, your upbringing, your parents, your friends play a role in making you who you are. So, for me, it's really, it's a variety of people. Um, I don't think I would point to any one person.

No, no one person. Many people. Many people in your life. Yeah, yeah, I know, I know who one of those many people are that, believe it or not, Mary Brocker, our president, just spoke to yesterday, and that would be Nan Deters. Yeah, and I remember, uh, when Nan was CFO I honestly, I still remember this years ago when she was talking to me. She said, you know what, you need to meet Karen Hanlon. She's an up-and-comer here. I think you had just become the controller or something. I can't remember what it was, but she was raving about you. And obviously she was right.

Yeah, yeah. Yeah, she was an amazing mentor. I mean, I— so I've been at Highmark for what, 24 years it'll be in August. And of that time, I probably worked for Nan for 15 or 16 of it in a variety of roles. And she was an amazing mentor, and I learned a lot of great stuff from her. And, you know, there's not a doubt in my mind that I wouldn't be where I am today without her. And, you know, and there were others as well. And frankly, there are still people, Joyce, you know, I mean, you know, you and I, you've referred to David Holmberg here on this call a number of times. David is an amazing leader. He is a role model for me in ways the same and different. As Nan, you know, and you take pieces and parts, I think, and kind of put them together to be your own person. And, you know, I've been lucky to have those people around.

Yes, I will never forget there was a dinner in the cafeteria or— no, the auditorium at Highmark. Small dinner with people with disabilities. That I had either working for me or working at Highmark. And it was the Careers to Be, the Gary Dick heads up, it was the Careers to Be meeting. And I must also mention, by the way, Mick Malek, who is just nonstop hiring people. But Gary Dick, who started Careers to Be, we would meet once a year and invite, you know, the hiring managers and the people with disabilities that have been hired. Well, David would come every year. And one year he came and he was seated at a table with an employee of mine that has a very significant stutter. And I just want to tell you, he was there patiently, spent time patiently, a long time. And that just impressed me so much because You know, he's like not all about him, and he is kind.

No doubt.

Yeah, yeah. Well, well, Karen, yeah, I want to thank you again. You were— you are a fantastic person. And I wanted to ask you, if, if you had a message to leave with our listeners today, what would it be?

Uh, I'll go with two, Joyce, and, and both will certainly align with the discussion we've had today. So one, I'll say, go hire people with disabilities. They want to be a part of the workforce and want to do a great job. So, you know, make your business better by doing that. And secondly, I would say go get your COVID-19 vaccine and be part of the solution so that everybody can get back to their normal lives. The vaccines are safe, they're effective, they, you know, we've definitely seen a significant decrease in the cases over the past few weeks. They're readily available now in multiple locations, so please go get your COVID-19 vaccine.

And I will endorse that because boy, when you get that vaccine, honestly, it made me feel so great knowing that I had that protection. Well, thank you again, Karen. It is always a pleasure to spend time with you.

Thank you, Joyce. Take care. I appreciate the time.

Well, we end every show with a quote. You know what? This quote today is how Highmark makes me feel. I've learned that people will forget what you said, 'People will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel,' said Maya Angelou. This is Joyce Bender, America's Voice, where disability matters, at voiceamerica.com. Join us next week with the CEO of the World Institute on Disability, Marcy Roth. Talk to you then.

Voice America would like to thank you for tuning in. Please join us next Tuesday at 11 AM Pacific Time and 2 PM Eastern Time for another installment of Disability Matters right here on the Voice America Variety Channel. We are the leader in live internet talk radio. VoiceAmerica.com.