WELLESLEY, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Eric H. Schultz, Harvard Pilgrim Health Care’s President and CEO, has recently signed on to the CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion, a collaboration between 275 CEO’s from leading world companies pledging to take measurable action in advancing diversity and inclusion in the workplace. Schultz is the only health plan CEO from New England and one of only six health plan CEO’s nationwide to sign on to the effort.

“Building on our great work around diversity & inclusion, we’re proud to commit to this important journey along with other CEO’s at leading companies across the world,” said Schultz. “Harvard Pilgrim Health Care will continue to strive to be a leading voice for equality within our workplace, our communities and the markets we serve.”

By signing onto this commitment, Schultz has pledged to both increase diversity and foster inclusion at Harvard Pilgrim Health Care by taking the following steps:

• Continue to cultivate workplaces that support open dialogue on complex, and sometimes difficult issues surrounding diversity and inclusion, so that co-workers gain greater awareness of each other’s experiences and perspectives.
• Implement and expand unconscious bias education to eliminate potential blind spots.
• Share best known—and unsuccessful—actions in order to help each other build and improve diversity strategies.

“Several years ago we challenged ourselves to push our thinking further and search for new opportunities to recognize and acknowledge differences,” said Schultz. “One key outcome is that we broadened our definition of inclusion and made it a core business imperative. For us, it means valuing difference and creating value through difference. I’m proud to say it is working.”

About The CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion

The CEO Action for Diversity & Inclusion leadership team is comprised of a committee of CEOs and executive leadership members from the following companies: Accenture, BCG, Deloitte US, The Executive Leadership Council, EY, General Atlantic, KPMG, New York Life, Procter & Gamble, and PwC. For more information on the coalition and its mission, click here.

About Harvard Pilgrim Health Care

Harvard Pilgrim is a not-for-profit health services company that, along with its subsidiaries, is improving the well-being of its 2.7 million customers. Harvard Pilgrim’s flagship health plans in New England provide health coverage to 1.3 million members, while another 1.4 million individuals are served through Health Plans, Inc., a subsidiary that provides integrated care management, health coaching and plan administration solutions to self-funded employers nationwide. Founded in 1969, Harvard Pilgrim has built its reputation on innovation and collaboration with a goal of lowering health care costs, improving care and enhancing the overall member experience. It is known for its excellent clinical programs, customer service, health improvement strategies and innovative tools that offer consumers greater transparency and empower them to make better decisions about their health care. Harvard Pilgrim is home to the Harvard Pilgrim Health Care Institute, a unique collaboration with Harvard Medical School. As Harvard Medical School’s Department of Population Medicine, the Institute is the only appointing department of a U.S. medical school housed within a health plan. Funded primarily through external government and private sources, it provides critical information to all levels of our health care system on issues affecting population health and health care delivery. Harvard Pilgrim is consistently among America’s highest-rated health plans according to an annual ranking of the nation’s best health plans by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA)*.