We asked some of our long-time small business customers why they chose — and continue to choose — Wellmark for their health coverage. Here’s the story of One Iowa.
With a full-time staff of just seven, One Iowa External Site is a small but mighty group of people who are committed to advancing, empowering, and improving the lives of LGBTQ Iowans statewide.
One Iowa, located in West Des Moines, was founded in 2005 to advocate for marriage equality. But, with the Iowa Supreme Court’s 2009 decision, and then the Supreme Court of the United States’ 2015 ruling that legalized same-sex marriage, the organization expanded their focus.
One Iowa’s work includes educating Iowans about the LGBTQ community. That includes training health care providers, law enforcement, business leaders and others to ensure LGBTQ Iowans are respected in every facet and stage of their lives. Promoting policies within state and local government that project the civil rights, health and safety of the community. Empowering tomorrow’s leaders through training and mentorship and connecting LGBTQ Iowans with resources.
Inclusive workplace, inclusive care
With a large breadth of work and small staff, it’s critical for the nonprofit to celebrate their employees and take care of their individual needs.
“We want to meet people where they’re at,” says Courtney Reyes, executive director. “We have people of all genders and gender non-conforming who are helping people learn and we embrace wherever they are in their journey. We’re striving to create a really positive workplace culture.”
So, when it comes to health benefits, One Iowa needs a health insurance company that is going to be there for its employees.
“We’ve had Wellmark insurance since the beginning,” Reyes says. “We want everyone on our staff to have the opportunity to have really great health insurance. And, Wellmark has been doing the work to make their own workplace culture safe and inclusive Opens in a new window, so we want to invest in companies who are investing in what we’re doing.”
Looking for coverage for your small business?
Choosing the right benefits for your business is a big decision. Look at the benefit solutions for businesses with 1–50 employees Opens in a new window and find the package that works best for you.
If you have any questions, contact your authorized Wellmark representative, or email us at blueatwork@wellmark.com Send Email.
About the series
We wanted to learn more about why some of our long-time small business customers continue to choose Wellmark for their health coverage in their own words. Trust, shared values, experience, longevity and understanding continually came to the forefront.
Thank you to One Iowa for sharing their story with us.
