Stefanie Cano, an account manager with Thrive Benefits, had dreams of being a dentist after college, but life-altering news of her father’s cancer diagnosis drastically changed her plans.
Not only was the news devastating for the family, but they were also left to navigate the complexities of the U.S. healthcare system. The challenge was compounded by the fact that her father did not have insurance.
“Things just happened so fast and at the time we didn't have as many options as someone that maybe did have insurance,” Cano, now 29, says. “We didn’t have access to the best providers that we could find.”
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While Cano’s family did their best to find him the best care possible, her father passed away in 2015, just nine months after being diagnosed with pancreatic cancer.
“My dad was truly an incredible dad — my favorite quality was his sense of humor and his unselfish, youthful spirit,” Cano says. “His illness came as a surprise for us — we didn’t have a plan, we relied on our healthcare system to advise on what would be the best course of action.”
The tragedy inspired Cano to switch careers with the hope of making a difference in the lives of other people dealing with challenging healthcare situations. Cano’s strength and determination to see the system change is what makes her part of the 2021 Rising Stars in benefits and advising.
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“Stefanie is passionate about changing the healthcare system and has empathy from personal experience,” says Rachel Miner, founder of ThriveBenefits. “She began her career working at a TPA and was curious as to why the healthcare system allows fraud and abuse.”
For Cano, working with each client allows her to look back on her own story for lessons in how to help employees get the best care, treatments and resources on the market. Being bilingual and having the experience of moving to the U.S. from Colombia at the age of 12, along with her father’s ordeal, allows Cano to relate to the difficult situations regarding healthcare that employees often face.
At Thrive, Cano works with five employer clients to help them find solutions to issues relating to medication denials, provider errors and billing issues. Cano also seeks to educate employers and employees on how to make smart healthcare decisions.
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Cano’s work ethic is second to none, Miner says. She often discovers that Cano has been working outside her typical hours to make sure her clients have everything they need.
“Any given Saturday, she will get a call from an employee who needs a prescription and she’ll be on the phone texting me at seven o’clock in the morning,” Miner says. “She just takes her job and her family very seriously.”
Cano says her clients give her an opportunity to dive deeper into the healthcare system and share her knowledge, especially during the pandemic, when resources are even more confusing.
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“I like to have discussions with our employee clients regarding our healthcare system. Every time there’s an opportunity to educate, I take it,” she says.
Open enrollment meetings, zoom calls, phone calls and emails are all tools she utilizes to get the message to her clients and answer their questions. Thrive will also distribute benefit brochures, which include detailed explanations of some confusing healthcare terms.
Making health and wellness a priority is something Cano encourages her clients to do and an activity she has embraced herself during the pandemic. Her main way to decompress is through meditation, relying on Spotify playlists.
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Making self-care and healthcare accessible is a key part to addressing the strain on employee well-being during the pandemic, Cano says. Her role is to simplify the more challenging parts of the healthcare system so that employees can reap the benefits of quality providers and resources.
It’s a role that could have helped her own family during their time of need.
“It’s hard to find a doctor that knows you and is easily accessible. My dad needed the support of a provider that would be easily accessible through the comfort of our homes,” Cano says. “Hospital settings were very stressful and tense and we never felt he was given quality care.”
