Veronica Villalobos, Vice President of the Institute for Strategic Social and Workforce Programs for Highmark Health and Allegheny Health Network

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, welcome to the show, to everyone in the United States and around the world. So I'm going to stop there. I'm always talking about the countries around the world with listeners. I am gonna share some of them with you today because they're all great listeners in all of these countries. My hat's off to you. I can't read all of them or we'd be here too long, but I'm gonna go through some of the larger ones. Of course, the United States, but Canada, United Kingdom, Brazil, Japan, India, China, Poland, South Korea, New Zealand, Australia, Kazakhstan, Kazakhstan, and Indonesia. I was both places and South Korea. There. Oh, there you go. Japan, South Korea, Indonesia, Kazakhstan. I was at all of them. So thank you, listeners. Keep on, lead on. You know how I told you that. Netherlands, Bangladesh, Sweden, France, Saudi Arabia. Pakistan, Iceland, Germany, Nepal, Uzbekistan, South Africa, Turkey, Spain, Kenya, Barbados, Ecuador, Iraq. Now I'm going to not read all of them, but I am going to tell you that there are many countries like the Republic of Moldova, Portugal, Paraguay, Oman, Algeria, here's one, Zimbabwe, and many others, but that have, guess what? One. One person listening. One. So, to those one people, every person can make a difference. Every person can make a difference. You, by going to other people with disabilities and making them aware. For example, there's an American Center at your embassy, someplace you can go where you could hear this in the English language, or just if there is any place that they can go. But you know what you're doing? You're helping people with disabilities in your country that they matter, that they count. I know how it is in some of these countries, especially some of the African countries that I mentioned. So hear me now, you're a champion. If you're one of those people in those country, you are a champion. You can make a difference. Which reminds me, Richard Roberts with the US State Department, I was with Richard in South Korea and Japan. He is an awesome person. He is now back in the United States. Richard, you know I love you. And Gangyang Cho, who is still in South Korea and became a good friend of mine. Special shout out to both of you. And here it comes. Ready, everyone? Now, if you're a faithful listener of mine, you already are saying what I'm about to say because you know I do this on every show for over 6 years, 7 maybe now. Okay, here's my special shout out to Yoshiko Dart. Yoshiko, you know I love you. And every time I see her, and yet she does do this, she's listening and she's saying back to the radio show, "I love you, Joyce, lead on." I know you're doing that, Yoshiko. So why do I mention her on every show? And I've told you this story before, but I want to emphasize it again. We don't have good history. The disability community, we are not in the American history books. Enough. Maybe a mention, ADA sign by President Bush, but go out tomorrow, you know, do a little poll, go up to people and say, "Who's Justin Dart?" And let's see how many people know. Sadly, not many, even though Justin was the most powerful person pushing through the ADA. He and his wife Yoshiko went around the country. I used to think it was 3 times, but now I think it was 5 on their own around the country. Can you believe that? Prior to the ADA being signed, to get people united to get behind this. Hey, Yoshiko, we need you. We need Justin right now. We could use a little Justin in that unity area. But special love to you. And guess what? Oh, I love Highmark. And wouldn't you know, we have a Highmark person today, but Highmark has been the lead sponsor for years. I bet Highmark never knew they would be so well known in Nepal and some of these countries. Some they would be, but you know what I mean. But Having Veronica Villalobos, the Vice President of the Institute for Strategic Social and Workforce Programs at Highmark Health and Allegheny Health Network, newly promoted in that role. This is your year, Veronica. You know that. You got moved up there, you got promoted there, and now you are the chair of the American Association for People with Disabilities. Yes, congratulations to you. As we are, even though the ADA Day has passed, we are still celebrating Disability Pride Month. Now, did you ever think, Veronica, you know, we met each other over 15 years ago, but did you ever think, oh yeah, I'm going to be the chair of the board of AAPD? And by the way, it's going to be Disability Pride Month. Isn't that an amazing thing, Veronica?

Yes, Joyce, it is, and thank you so much for having me on the show. I am completely honored and humbled by being voted in as the chair. I can't believe it myself. I'm following people like you and Susan Dingelman and Ted Kennedy Jr., and I mean, the list goes on and on. Helen Berger. I'm just amazed. Right? And, um, I, I'm just excited to make a difference for our community. And I do say our community. I'm a person with a disability too, and we can talk a little bit about that. Um, but I'm here to make a difference and help folks. It's not about me, it's about everyone else. And together we can lift each other up.

Oh my God, I wish all of you knew her the way I do. I mean, you have no idea how lucky we are. She's brilliant. We'll start there. Uh, an attorney disability rights leader, a very, very successful businessperson, federal and private, public and private, and just such a kind person. And you know what? You mark my words, she's going to make a big difference at AAPD. She is. So your leader, all of you listening to the show, it's a really good one. Veronica Villalobos, you watch out. When she goes on the Hill, when she's a different place, when she's on TV, you just wait. You'll see what I mean. And I'm so excited. And also that you were promoted. I'm thinking, boy, this is Veronica year. I mean, this is really a great thing. And you know who else was the chair? Chris Griffin. Oh, who will be— yeah, who will be talking about a little bit later, who I have the great fortune that she introduced, uh, me to you. And I believe you met her EEOC, right? Was that when you met Chris?

That's exactly right. Yeah, gosh, I probably met her in 2008, around that time frame.

Yep. Okay, so what were you doing in EEOC?

So at EEOC, I was a member of the First Honor Program, and I started out working in the federal sector and got to do all these different detail opportunities. I worked at National Labor Relations Board. It was just this great, tremendous experience. Worked on underrepresentation of Latinos in the federal workforce. But the thing I learned the most about, and to me was transformational, was the American Americans with Disabilities Act, right? Just understanding the rights of the employee, the dignity of work, and the obligation of the employer, that was really transformational for me while I was there at EEOC.

There are people that don't understand EEOC. Could you explain to everyone what that is?

EEOC. Sure. So, it stands for the Goodness, Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, and it started out back in 1964. It was established through Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, and it prohibits discrimination by employers on the basis of race, national origin, sex, and then afterward with the Americans with Disabilities Act, disability. Equal Pay Act is also part of what they enforce. So, it's all around making sure that the employer focuses on people's talents and not on their protected characteristics.

Yeah, well, that is really very important. And you know what? I always ask people about their story, and I'm sorry I didn't do that even before we talked about this, but listeners around the world, in the United States, they'll hear someone and, "Oh, they really love that person. I wish I knew more." How about, like, story, like where did you grow up and then how did you get to D.C.? I know how you got to Pittsburgh. Yes, she is in the great city of Pittsburgh. Uh, go ahead, let's hear your story.

Sure, thanks Joyce. So my family is originally from Texas and I grew up in El Paso, Texas, uh, went to school there, high school there, and when I was Graduating, I thought, I don't want to stay in Texas. It's too big a state. I want to go somewhere else. I ended up going to St. Mary's in South Bend, Indiana. Loved it there and thought, still not, not the right size, right? A little bit like Goldilocks. So I'd visited DC before and I decided I'm going to go to DC for a fellowship. So I did a fellowship there in DC and then ended up going to law school. At American University's Washington College of Law. And after that, I kind of caught that DC bug and I stayed there. And like I mentioned, I, I was part of that first EEOC Honor Program class and was then able to work at the Office of Personnel Management, where I was able to focus on diversity and inclusion. Working with Chris Griffin, we started the first diversity and inclusion office in the federal government. We helped spread it all across every agency. 200 different agencies with 200 DEI strategic plans.

And then—

Wow. Yeah, then I started doing workforce planning, right? Strategic workforce planning. Because, you know, if you're talking about workforce, you're talking about getting talent from every place, from every group. We thought about that not as a DNI solution or DEI solution, it's a talent solution. Let's get the best from every group. And so that's how I started working there. And now I'm here in Pittsburgh doing the same thing for Highmark.

Yes, at a great company. I love Highmark, as you well know. So when I met you at OPM, you just described what your role was. But I wanted to talk for a minute about— I remember being at the White House. I remember Chris Griffin being up front with President Obama, you know, and other dignitaries when it was signed into law. What, what was that executive order? What and how, how was OPM involved in that?

Yeah, so that was actually one of President Obama's first executive orders under his administration. It was July of 2010. And it was entitled Increasing Federal Employment of Individuals with Disabilities. And the goal for the all— for the whole of the federal government was to hire 100,000 people with disabilities over 5 years. And we focused on making sure that we got the best and brightest talent from across the country. Joyce Bender, you were part of that story. You helped us start the list of people with disabilities, and the reason was that people would say, "Oh, I want to hire people with disabilities, but I can't find people who have the skills that I need, the specific occupations that I need." So we, we took that excuse right off the table. You'll remember, we got folks for all the skill gaps that we had in federal government, and we listed all these talented individuals with all manner of skill sets, degrees, backgrounds all across the country. Based on that work, within 5 years we hired almost 120,000 people with disabilities. And the thing to note here is it wasn't people at lower levels, entry level, it was all the way throughout. It was everything from people at entry level work to mid-level to managerial to executives, because the talent of people with disabilities is across the entire landscape. It was amazing. We should be able to do that every 5 years, to be honest.

Yes, and at the states. Absolutely. That's what I want to see, that we do that even at the state level. But Veronica, first I have to— it's not funny. It's funny, but it's true, is when Chris would say— Chris Griffin is like the most awesome person, and what was her title? Was it assistant director, deputy director?

She was deputy director of the Office of Personnel Management.

Okay. So, anyway, she used to be a vice chair in EEOC. But, but I, I went with her and with the Department of Labor and the late Dinah Cohen, so terrible we lost her. We would go with this little group to the different federal agencies. And all I know— oh, it'll come to me in a minute. You know, she is with— she was with EEOC. Okay, it's going to come to me. Anyway, we would all go and we would speak to this, you know, the audience. And you know what? Some of them, they just weren't interested. And like, you can't get that far along with Chris, as you know, if you're like that. And Chris would say, one, one, okay? Can you hire one, one person? And I tell that story all the time. And I just heard Hy Feldblum tell that story, how she would say that. You know, isn't that a shame? Because guess what? Now I say it. Right. One? You have like 300,000 employees, company XYZ, can you hire one person? I mean, I don't know, Veronica, how do you think it's possible that after 35 years, this is the 35th anniversary of the signing of the ADA, that we still have 70% of people with disabilities not counted in the workforce, I mean, really, it's just almost impossible to explain.

Yeah, Joyce, I agree with you. I don't understand it. There's so many highly talented people, and we're all looking for the best talent in every group. How can we leave this talent on the table? It makes zero sense to me. I remember one time talking to a pretty high-level official,, and I'm not going to say the agency, but let's just say it's an agency that thought really well of themselves and thought of themselves as a bunch of Ivy Leaguers. And they said, you know, our jobs are very rigorous, and so I don't know how we're going to go about hiring people with disabilities. And I said, I know, I know who can handle some rigor. Chris Griffin. You have any doubt she could do one of your, your legal roles, and that stopped them in their tracks. They didn't say a word after that. I will say, I'm not saying it was me, but I will say after they were embarrassed by that comment, they started hiring, and they were responsible for a lot of the hiring during those 5 years.

Wow, you gave a great example. Yeah, yeah, you gave a great— but I— yeah, I know, I know the things that people would say are just— I went once, I met with the CEO of a mid-sized company. Now this was like 25, 27 years ago at least, and they had not hired people with disabilities, but they wanted to. And I got to meet with the CEO, and he's— I'm talking about— he's saying, oh yeah, I'm all gung-ho except for one thing. Joyce, really now? You're trying to make me think blind people can do these jobs. And I said, remember I told you about that high unemployment rate? Remember? He said, yeah, yeah, yeah. I said, you know why that is? Because of people like you. That's why it is. Needless to say, I did not work with that company. But what companies forget, or agencies, they already have people with disabilities working there. It's just those people don't want to say they have a disability, but they're already, you know, working at the company. Well, that was a great partnership, Veronica. That was great. It was great. Well, now you're at my favorite company, which, as you know, this is the 30th anniversary of Bender Consulting Services, and it all started— that's why I said one man. You know, Bill Lowry, one person signed a paper. Yes, Joyce Bender will hire 6 subcontractors and keep them on contract for 3 years. I would be in a— like in Kazakhstan, and I'd think he'd never believe it. When he did that, he would never believe what was going to happen. But here you are at that great company as Vice President for Institute for Strategic Social and Workforce Programs. At Highmark Health AHN. So, for those that are not familiar with Highmark, how large is Highmark and how large is AHN?

So, Highmark Health, including AHN, is about 44,000 people. And if you take out AHN, that's about half the company, about 22,000. Think clinical staff, think nurses, doctors, people who help hospitals run, technicians. So it's a pretty diverse company. You know, we have our health plans, we're diversified, we have our hospital system and we have 10 large hospitals and 4 neighborhood hospitals. We're in Pennsylvania, New York, West Virginia, and Delaware. And our job here in my institute particular is to make sure that we are creating health access for everyone, that when you walk into any of our doors or you call us, We're creating this wonderful world-class experience for you that you feel like everything is curated and personalized specifically for you. What that means is we know how to work with people who have all kinds of disabilities, who speak all kinds of languages, or who just have run-of-the-mill everyday needs. We're here to try to serve them to create a healthcare experience that feels personalized.

Yeah, I mean, it is a wonderful place, but it's amazing how large Highmark got from when they were Blue Cross of Western Pennsylvania to then Highmark to Highmark Health owning— is that like 14 hospitals approximately? Yes, 14 hospitals. Wow.

And Clinics. Clinics.

And you mentioned diversified business. They work in other areas like vision or dental, right?

Correct. We have vision and dental. We have Medicare and Medicaid, personal employer plans. You name it, we've got it. And what's great about it is we're all around making the individual kind of have this living health experience. We tell us it's this virtual cycle. Where you work closely with your clinician, and it's all about what's going to be best for the individual so that you're always— you're excited to go see your doctors. You're excited because you know that you're going to be in the best health possible, be it your vision, be it your dental, be it your physical health, whatever it is.

Well, I was telling the CEO, David Holmberg, when he was asking me, I'm really committed to this. What do you think is the problem with employment at some healthcare concerns? I said, thinking of the person with a disability as the patient, no matter what. They're in a wheelchair, they come, but it's because they have a virus, a respiratory virus. But there's a lot of healthcare facilities across the United States, they see that person, they don't even see, oh, they have this— they see, oh, they have a disability, you know, like they're a patient because of that disability. You know what I mean? Right. That's why I think it's so great what you're doing at AHN, looking at all aspects, and how great it is when you yourself have a disability and are a lived experience, and you're speaking about that, and that alone is something awesome. How did that feel to you when you first disclosed you had a disability? What— how did that seem?

Well, it's interesting, Joyce. It's like everything, right? You— for me, I have two disabilities. One is endometriosis, and for For those who don't know, look it up, Google it real quick. You'll see what comes with it. It's a lot of pain. It's a lot of— it's a chronic condition. But what I've since learned is I also have severe migraines. And those two often go hand in hand. That's kind of something new that's coming out of the research. But it could be debilitating. And I luckily have had employers who work with me. And now I've learned to manage them. But it's hard to talk about. You're talking about your health condition. You're trying to figure out how to help people understand why we all come to the work in different ways and we need different accommodations, right? It's funny when you talk about the doctors, though. It's been fascinating to develop relationships with your primary caregiver— or, I'm sorry, your primary care physician. I know when I first had that, like, breakthrough, it was because my doctor and I had the same shoes on. We had the same— we started talking like we were best friends, had known each other forever because we had shoes in common. I share that because that's what it needs to feel like when we go see our caregivers, our medical providers, right? It has to feel like you're visiting with your best friend and you're just talking about what's going to make you the healthiest. And that's what we're trying to do here.

And I think that's important and that's good advice because the one problem I see, especially people with disabilities, sometimes when you go to the doctor, they're afraid to ask questions. And I don't know if they think that's because, oh, they're going to tell me something else, you know, that I have another problem, or just that they fear it's inappropriate. But I always tell people, You're talking about building that relationship. You have to speak up. You have the right to ask any question that you want of a doctor. Yeah. And as I said, I don't know why that is, but someone said to me, yeah, the person goes to the doctor and they say, okay, wait, I have 10 minutes to say everything that's wrong with me. But I'm very fortunate because it's the opposite. With me, and I can tell with you also when you described your doctor. Well, something that I know, Veronica, you and I have talked about for quite a while is how Highmark is so committed to hiring people with disabilities. Now, just so everyone, for your benefit, again, I used to be in executive search I had a relationship with Mr. Bill Lowry, who was the CEO of Blue Cross of Western Pennsylvania, and when I discovered how hard it was for people with disabilities to even get an interview, let alone a job, I went to him and asked him if he would partner with Bender and bring on board 6 people with disabilities and keep them on contract for 3 years. And it only took him one day to say yes. So my story, that's why I said one person, you know, can make such a difference. But what's more amazing is then when he retired, I still remember when he took me to lunch to meet with the incoming John Bross. He would be the next CEO. And he looked at him and said, John, I wanted you to meet Joyce because there's a few things important to me, and this is one of them. Keep it going. And he did. And then, as a matter of fact, when I was at the exhibit at the Heinz History Center, there was a picture of me, and he's in that picture, John Braus. And when John retired, he— I met with Dr. Milani. And then when Dr. Milani retired, He took me to meet Bill Winkenwerder, and then along came David Holmberg. Every CEO, 30 years, has stood behind me. I mean, not like just a little bit behind the scenes, right out front, which is incredible when you think about that.

Right.

Why do you think that is? Why do you think this one company. It's a shame there aren't more, but why do you think that is?

When I think of Highmark Health, I think of a company that prioritizes people, and I really think that's what it's about. Highmark realizes that if we have an organization, a workforce that represents all the people that we serve from all our different backgrounds, we're going to be better able to create those strong customer connections that will create that strong, improved branding, honestly, right? That tenacity, that innovative thinking that comes from people from different backgrounds, especially people with disabilities, right? There's a tenacity to us because we've had to overcome so many different struggles and seek different ways to find accommodations and find ways to just live our lives in a world that was created in a the standard way. And I do believe that Highmark is just really good at tapping into that innovation and understands the value of it.

Well, you know, they have been recognized by many groups, one of which is AAPD, the American Association of People with Disabilities. You know, it is a policy organization, but It's really the go-to that, you know, that in, in D.C. that people go to for, okay, what do you think about this, or can you get the disability community involved in this? AAPD, do you think you could have an impact on employment? AAPD?

I certainly hope so, right? I think that's one of the areas that I'd like to work with the organization to think about how we get folks to shift their thinking about hiring people with disabilities. It— I will be honest, I think it is an imperative if businesses want to connect with all of their customers, if they want to have folks who are loyal to the company, who they're able to retain for longer periods of time as employees, they're going to want to hire people with disabilities. And I really do think that should be one of the things we focus on in the years to come. Is how do we get more people with disabilities hired? Because they are a tremendous asset to employers. I can tell you this from the time I was in the federal government where I, as I mentioned, we hired over 100, almost 120,000 people. I think we were like 118,000, almost 119,000 people right here at Highmark. We keep hiring folks and they are just tremendous assets to the company. And that's exactly what more employers need to realize in this time of, this time of a tight labor market. It would just be wise to get these talented people on board.

Yes. And what I love about Highmark is that it's all levels.

Yes.

You know, there was a time when I started that people would say to me, oh, well, if you had people with a lot of experience, we would hire them. Well, of course I didn't. Because people with disabilities weren't getting hired at all. So how would they have, you know, years of experience? But Highmark not only has hired people but promoted people. See, that's what it's all about, getting moved up. And there are actually people at Highmark who have called me and said they wanted to hire a person. That was like the greatest thing to me. You know, when it, when it goes to that level, that is so awesome. But I think AAPD can be more involved in that, and I'm just excited about the work they do with interns, with young people, so many great things. And now they'll have you. Who knows what limits they can go to having you as the chair? I mean, I Yes, I am excited. I admit it. I admit it. I'm biased. So you talked about this a little bit. Don't you think it's also important? Don't you see a difference when it comes from the top about hiring people with disabilities? Do you see that also?

Yeah, absolutely, Joyce Bender. I think when it comes from the top, people take it seriously and they understand why it matters. One of the barriers that I've seen historically around hiring people with disabilities is you'll hear people say what I kind of think of as pretext. They say, "I'm not sure the person's the right fit." Right? It's always about the right fit. When someone in leadership says, "I want you to hire more people with disabilities," people stop thinking about what their prototype is of a specific employee in a specific spot, and they go, let's follow the direction of our leader, let's bring people on board. And then once they do that, they find that they are— the people with disabilities are an outstanding asset to the organization.

Yeah, yeah, they do do that. That's what Mary Brocker, uh, who, as you know, passed away 4 years ago. But when Mary was the president of the company, if we would be somewhere and the hiring manager would say, "Well, yeah, we were going to look at a few more people," and Mary would say, "Well, are they qualified, the person we sent?" "Yeah." Okay. So, if they are qualified, then why do you have to look at more people?

Right, right.

More qualified. Qualified the way I want them to be qualified. Do you know what I mean? Yeah. And the other thing I would hate is when people would say to me, okay, but when you send people now, they have to be qualified.

Right.

Okay. Like I told someone, listen, do you say that when you hire white men? Do you say, okay. If you send a white man, they have to be qualified. No. So why do you say that to me? Because what is the assumption then? That I'm thinking you think the majority of people with disabilities are not qualified. Do you know what I mean, Veronica?

Yeah, absolutely. You know, I was recently talking to someone I mentor, and what I heard in him was that kind of broken feeling you have when you don't feel like you're seen. And he is so intelligent and just amazing, like brilliant, honestly, Joyce Bender. And I said to him, I bet you feel like people never give you a chance and they're not listening to you, but you know how to solve all their problems if they just give you the time of day. And he's like, it's like you see me for the first time, but it's because there's all these talented people who, because they fall into this category of a person with a disability aren't listened to in the same way. People treat them like, oh, you must not be as talented, or you must not be as educated, when in fact, when we look at the numbers, people with disabilities are highly educated, have lots of talent, and we just need to give folks a chance.

Mm-hmm. Yeah. Well, I agree with that, and I know that you are loving this show. Listen, remember, This show is on Spotify, Apple, Amazon. In other words, if you have Audible, all really almost every social media platform, you can grab this show right now. It's live on YouTube audio. Too bad it's not also visual because Veronica, you look so nice today, but it's audio. You know what that means? That means you can grab it and grab that post, send it to someone else. And I know that is a good thing to do. And with that, we're going to go to break. This is Joyce Bender on Disability Matters. We'll be right back with Veronica. Don't go away.

At Highmark Health, we believe what makes us unique makes us better. Our differences broaden our perspectives and foster a variety of skills to complement each other, creating a stronger and more vibrant workforce. It's this belief that earned us recognition as the Best Place to Work for the 10th year for individuals with disabilities in a survey by the American Association of People with Disabilities and disability in. We'll continue to celebrate and benefit from the inclusion of all people. To find out more, visit highmarkhealth.org.

Everyone has unique abilities, and with ABLE NOW, individuals with disabilities are able to save money while maintaining certain benefits such as Medicaid. ABLE NOW is a tax-advantaged savings program specifically designed for people with disabilities. Open an account online today Apply today and start saving for the things that are important to you. To learn if you or someone you know is eligible, visit ablenow.com. ABLE NOW is administered by Virginia529. Since 1985, Bender Consulting Services has served as a national leader in advancing employment of people with disabilities, including veterans with disabilities, with private sector companies and federal government agencies. Bender assists customers with achieving their diversity and workforce inclusion initiatives by tapping into a talent pool of individuals seeking professional positions, including those in the STEM fields. In addition, Bender services include disability employment consulting, training, and technology accessibility through their high-tech line of service. For more information, please visit www.benderconsult.com. Are you currently receiving SSDI or SSI and wanting to work? Did you know there is a free Social Security program called You know the program called Ticket to Work to help you try work without risking your benefits? My Employment Options is an authorized SSA Employment Network specializing in work-at-home and local job placement in 47 states. Our clients receive a personal counselor to help find the best job fit and a staff-certified benefits counselor for help with Ticket to Work protections. Ready to try working? Apply for free job placement help at myemploymentoptions.com. Follow Voice America at facebook.com/voiceamerica for juicy updates from your favorite radio shows and podcasts.

You're listening to Disability Matters. Now please welcome back the host of Disability Matters. Here's Joyce Bender.

Welcome back, everyone. Hey, If you just joined us, we are talking to Veronica Villalobos, the Vice President of the Institute for Strategic Social and Workforce Programs for Highmark Health and the Allegheny Health Network, and the new chair of the American Association of People with Disabilities. Tell everyone, share this post, everyone will want to know who Veronica is, and she is such a great person. Veronica, for people listening right now, business people, why would you encourage them to hire people with disabilities, and what should they do if they're saying, yeah, I want to, but the people beneath me don't want to?

Yeah, so I mean Joyce, I feel like I've said it for the last several minutes that we've been talking. Wider talent pools, people who are highly educated, highly talented, they will improve your employee morale when they come on board. They'll improve your ability to retain employees. They'll bring additional insights about your customers because many of your customers, whether you realize it or not, have disabilities. And overall, they just create a stronger connection with everybody that you work with. So I, I don't know how you couldn't do it. If you're a leader in any organization and you're trying to figure out how do I improve my bottom line, hire a person with a disability and then keep doing it. Make sure you're telling folks who work with you why this is important to you. And we all have different reasons, right? Right? But find that magic language that is going to resonate with your employees. For me, I care deeply about innovation. I know that when I bring people with disabilities into our workplace, they are some of the most innovative, creative employees that I have, and that's why I love to hire people with disabilities. But everyone's reason is a little bit different. Find it. There's about 10 different reasons I could give. If I had all day, I could give you more.

You know, well, yes, I agree. And you know what, Veronica, if you want to change the way people think at your company, hire someone. Yes, you could talk about this forever, but you have to hire someone, see them, meet them to realize, hey, what's wrong with me? I should have been hiring people with disabilities. That's always what happens to me. It starts with a couple of people, and then all of a sudden they start hiring more and more and more people. And there have been great people. Of course, Karen Hanlon and David, uh, and Deb Rice. Uh, oh my goodness, Larry Kleinman has been wonderful. Uh, Mick Malek. I just want to mention Tracy Sala. Yes, is I will never forget this. I'm in downtown and she calls and this is what she said. Joyce, this is Tracy. I have 15 openings and I want to call you immediately. Let's get going. Wow, wouldn't that be great if I got that call from everyone? And she did hire people. And then when she came to meet me for lunch, she said, I came and she had in her hand this paper. I came with the reviews. And all the people, top performer, best performer. I wish I could hire more people like that. You know what I mean? I just need more and more people like that.

Yeah, and Joyce, just to that exact point, Tracy's whole department, they focus on innovation. They focus on the customer-centric, how do I create the best product for Highmark Health customers, right, and members and beneficiaries. That's what they do. So her saying these are the best, highest-level performers goes exactly to what I'm saying, I'm saying about innovation. That's exactly who she needed, and that's exactly what people with disabilities brought to her department.

Yeah, yeah, she is, uh, and, uh, you know Melissa Stevens Williams. Thank you. I always, I always get it backwards. Is another great person that has met with me, you know, hiring people. It's just Tracy's like, oh, unbelievable. And Mick Malick can never say enough about Mick Malick. Yeah, enough good things. Absolutely. Record holder, record holder for hiring people. Um, you know, one thing I did want to ask you, uh, Veronica, in the Latinx community, what do you see with people with disabilities getting jobs from that community? Is it the same across the board? What do you think?

You know, that's a really interesting question, Joyce Bender. That intersectionality is such an important part of all of our identities, right? And I can tell you, I can think of leaders in, in the Latinx community and in disability, and sometimes they are the same folks, right? Like, I'm thinking of a Kathy Martinez and some of the other folks that I know. I think it's an area we really have to think about, though. At AAPD, I've heard us do a lot where we talk about how we're going to just be inclusive of every group, how we make sure that no matter what your identity is, we're there to support you. So it's an important question. I will say that I think I'm seeing a good representation across the board, but I don't have, you know, I'm a data person, I love data. And I can't tell you I know the data on this. It's something worth looking into.

Yeah, you know, one thing I can tell you, I would, as you know, because you're on the board, I'm on the chair of the local Epilepsy Association of Western and Central PA. But at one time I was the national chair of the Epilepsy Foundation. And we found so many examples in the United States since the Spanish language is spoken so much that there were pockets like in New York and different areas where people weren't getting medication and weren't being helped. Yes, it was stigma, but in addition, they didn't understand.

Yeah.

That's the translation. They, they didn't understand, so people had died or were having ongoing accidents. And I, you know, that's important to remember that that whole translation part is so important. Yeah, and that, and that includes the deaf community too.

Yeah, that's such a great point. So one of the big efforts that we work on here at Highmark Health and Allegheny Health Network is what we call the culturally and linguistically appropriate service standards. And it's about making sure that we are speaking every language for every person who walks through our doors or calls on our lines or tries to reach out to us through email or any myriad of ways. It's about having the right people able to speak the right languages at the right time. We use online services We have folks who are able to come and join patients, for example, with their physicians in person with sign language. It just varies, but you're absolutely right. It's having that, that those services and the language that people need. It's interesting when you're talking about this area here, we have, I wanna say we have about 20 commonly spoken languages and it depends on which hospital you're in. Which are the most common spoken languages. It's not always Spanish as number one. It might be French Creole in one of our hospitals. You know, it just varies, but it's important to be able to work with people and meet them where they are and speak to them in a way where they fully understand what you're asking them to do.

Yeah, right.

Right? That's how you're gonna get the best patient outcomes every time.

So Veronica, you know, look at all these things you've accomplished. At your young life that you're at, um, over the past several years, you know, in your life, what would you— what do you believe are some of your greatest accomplishments?

Oh, it's so funny, Joyce. I don't think of life as having accomplishments as much as, uh, let's put it this way, there are things I've been able to be a part of that have made a difference. I'll give you a quick example. Since I moved here, getting those COVID vaccinations to every community, we spent a lot of time trying to make sure that those went around to anyone who wanted one in every community and if we had to come to you, we were going to bring you those vaccinations, right? That was one thing. I was incredibly proud of the work that we did in the federal government in terms of bringing people with disabilities on board, making sure that we were meeting the executive order and providing opportunities there. The work we did on strategic planning, where human capital wasn't considered some separate part— oh yeah, those people that employ us to get our mission done. Instead, people were part of the mission and helping them plan that way. And helping them plan for people all across the country to be part of their government. Those are some of the things I was most proud of. One more thing, we have been able to decrease infant mortality here in this Allegheny Health Network region. So proud of the work that the team has done on that. I'm just happy to be part of the institute where we're able to say we work on it.

Wow. Well, congratulations, that's a very important thing. Yeah, that would be very gratifying. Yeah. Um, okay, so Veronica, obviously you didn't get this way by just one day, here I am, this nice, compassionate, smart person. Who is your role model?

So it's so funny, Joyce, as I was thinking about this question, I thought I might get something like this, and I, I feel like Chris Griffin has really shown me what it is to be a straight shooter, to tell people what they need to hear when they need to hear it. Um, and I hope to be more like her every day while also getting along with everybody. I was in a meeting today and I said my goal for 2025 is to make everybody's life a little easier and get along. At the same time, I think you also have to speak truth, and I feel like Chris has really shown me that. I will also say, and this is in all, in all sincerity, you have been a huge role model for me for the last 15 years. I'm so impressed with what, what you do every day and the way that you connect with folks from all different backgrounds, everything from presidents and CEOs. You are my, you know, 7 degrees of separation to certain people. I don't know if people know all the honors you've had. They should look you up. But the two of you have really shown me a way of leading and also staying humble.

Well, thank you. That is certainly is an honor to have you say that, Veronica, because you know how I think about you. So Veronica, thank you so much for being with us today.

Thank you, Joyce Bender. It has been a pleasure.

I—

have me back anytime, but let's just talk about like I don't know, clothes or something.

Okay, okay, we'll talk about food. I'll have you back. We get dark, right?

Yeah, that sounds good.

With you, it would be shoes. I know that. I know, I love you.

That's what I was thinking, fashion.

Well, everyone, I know you enjoyed this show, but I want to remind you, share this. Go to any social media venue, share the show. If you're listening right now, share the show, and thank you all so much for being such faithful listeners. So we end every show with a quote, and here it is: "Never bend your head. Hold your head high. Look the world straight in the eye," said Helen Keller. This is Joyce Bender, America's Voice, where disability matters at voiceamerica.com. Talk to you all next week, and in the words of Mary Brooker, when you get up tomorrow, remember, choose joy.

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 Voices. Matters right here on the Voice America Variety Channel. We are the leader in live internet talk radio. VoiceAmerica.com.