Centene Team Members Appreciate Company's Support of National Hispanic Heritage Month

During National Hispanic Heritage Month, Centene is shining the spotlight on Hispanic leaders and employees.

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

Q: Tell us about your background, your career at Centene, and your current.

ERICK: I 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: I started with Centene in 2019 as a coordinator for our grievance team. My roles before Centene 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 Centene 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 Centene manages our members’ healthcare needs.  

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

ERICK: Working collaboratively with fellow colleagues both in office and virtually across New York state to provide innovative care and access to members’ corresponding medications. Another meaningful 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.              

JULIAN: The 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 Centene 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

Q: How is Centene’s approach to DEI different from other companies?

ERICK: An 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. 

Centene 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: In my eyes, it’s obvious that Centene’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. Centene and its employees have shown me that my ideas, presence and contributions are truly valued.

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

ERICK: The 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: I 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.