Social

Health and well-being are essential building blocks to personal fulfillment, thriving communities and a stronger North Dakota. When it comes to our social commitment, we focus on building opportunities for well-being for the people we employ and serve across the state.

Young professional BCBSND employee smiling at company event.

Equity and inclusion

We strive to make sure our employees feel safe, included and welcome. Our employee-driven program called the Inclusion, Diversity, Belonging and Equity (IDBE) Council works to create an environment where all team members are valued and empowered to do and feel their best. The team focuses on:

  • Reviewing internal policies and procedures
  • Raising awareness around cultural observations, holidays and sharing employee stories
  • Offering an outlet for all employees to ask questions, raise concerns and access resources

We also encourage fairness and a diverse and inclusive workforce through our hiring practices and compensation benchmarking processes to promote pay equity across differing populations.

Well-being and flexibility in the workplace

  • A holistic approach to a culture of well-being with physical, financial, social, professional, emotional and environmental elements
  • Well-Being Lifestyle Spending Account, a $500 employer-funded, post-tax flexible account that can be used to buy a variety of lifestyle and wellness products and services, like fitness gear, state park fees, golf lessons, self-defense classes, home cleaning services and certification courses
  • Breastfeeding-friendly workplace, with dedicated lactation rooms at each office
  • Paid parental leave upon birth/adoption
  • In-office, work-from-home or hybrid flexibility
  • PTO, paid holidays and three paid flexible holidays
  • Dedicated employee social media platform to share personal stories, connect and publicly recognize colleagues’ work
  • Two paid hours annually for preventive screening visits
  • Up to 16 hours off annually to volunteer
  • Free access to Learn to Live and meQ, online behavioral health resources, and Live Well EAP counseling services

Over 33%

More than one-third of our workforce is fully remote

3,700 hours volunteered in 2022

52% of employees spent time volunteering for 100 nonprofits

$800,000

Invested across five key impact areas on gaps in services and other inequities that adversely impact health

Career development

  • An internship program that offers experience in team collaboration, volunteerism and a capstone project
  • Tuition assistance for continued education
  • Mentoring programs that pair tenured employees with young professionals
  • Ongoing development, including budget for classes or conferences
  • A succession program to prepare high-performing individuals for future leadership opportunities
  • A dedicated, year-long new leader training program

Community investments

  • The BCBSND Caring Foundation works to advance community-centered solutions to better health across all generations through statewide well-being grants and community engagement initiatives
  • 27 scholarships awarded each year to strengthen the health care workforce and cultivate the next generation of health care leaders
  • Over 3,700 hours volunteered by employees and $200 donated per employee to a nonprofit of their choice
  • Participating in a four-year commitment to bring trauma-informed training to Boys and Girls Clubs of America
  • Working with local sports teams on community engagement initiatives to increase awareness and access for youth mental health services
  • Awarded grant to Beyond Boundaries Therapy to provide therapy services to children and families in rural communities through North Dakota's first Mobile Therapy Unit

Health disparities

  • Caring Foundation collaborated with North Dakota State University Center for Social Research on a statewide health assessment, based on the social determinants of health (SDoH) to inform strategy, investments and decision making
  • Held a series of roundtables and community discussions to share SDoH study results with a goal to engage local leaders to identify and advance solutions
  • Strengthening partnerships and resources to address SDoH disparities and access, including food, childcare, transportation, housing and mental, behavioral and substance use disorder services
  • Conducted internal health equity impact assessment to identify opportunities to advance health equity across BCBSND operations and services
  • Improving rural health with telehealth options for more access and measures to reduce health costs
  • $50,000 invested in eight communities through rural health partnership grants offered to rural providers and their communities to stimulate new thinking around health care providers championing SDoH components
  • Strategies to improve health disparities in North Dakota through our BlueAlliance program, which focuses on improving the quality of care and reducing the cost of growth
  • Data-driven outreach to Medicaid Expansion members at risk of losing their coverage due to the end of the public health emergency to transition them to individuals plans
  • Partner with Arkos Health to provide health management support for Medicaid Expansion members to assist with needs like getting to medical appointments, managing medications and coordinating care

Social impact goals

  • Positively move the needle on key health drivers through funding support and key metric tracking and analysis
  • Strengthen and expand networks and partnerships that enable cross-sector collaboration that amplify impact and leverage expertise to create lasting change and inspire others
  • Reach a new level of health and well-being among North Dakotans