Roberta Wachtelhausen is the president of expanding WellSpark Health, a Farmington provider of corporate wellness programs that announced plans earlier this year to grow its headquarters and add 287 jobs over the next seven years.
“We’re hiring like crazy because we’re growing like crazy,” Wachtelhausen told HBJ last November.
The company’s offerings — which focus on several areas, including health coaching and disease prevention, particularly related to chronic diseases like diabetes and hypertension — have seen growing demand as employers put an emphasis on keeping their workers healthy.
WellSpark is an affiliate of health insurer ConnectiCare, which has been led by President Eric Galvin since 2017.
ConnectiCare, a subsidiary of New York-based EmblemHealth, has been a stalwart presence in the state-run Access Health CT Obamacare insurance exchange, when giants like Aetna, Cigna and UnitedHealthcare have ignored the marketplace.
Galvin, who was formerly chief financial officer, succeeded seven-year chief executive Eric Wise in 2017.
Since Galvin’s appointment as president, ConnectiCare has tightened its bond with the Connecticut Business & Industry Association (CBIA), launching a type of self-insured health plan, known as a “level-funded” plan, in the lobbying group’s insurance exchange.
During the pandemic, Galvin acted quickly to ensure his company could manage and expand telemedicine coverage. He also mobilized resources to make sure that ConnectiCare’s 700 employees could quickly shift to remote work. The insurer also opened its fifth ConnectiCare center in Shelton, which helps members better understand and use their health plans, and make informed decisions about doctors, coverage and staying well.
In May, the insurer, which was originally founded by a group of local doctors, marked its 40th year in business.