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Welcome to The Healthy Bottom Line

A Podcast for Employee Benefits Professionals Focused on Better Health and affordability. Brent Smith’s journey into health care started when his first post-college employer offered an incentive to employees to complete their annual physical. Short on cash and buried in student loans—he went. That visit led to a diagnosis of Metabolic Syndrome and changed the course of his life. It sparked a deep curiosity about health in America, a personal commitment to wellness, and the realization that an employer’s benefits strategy can change lives.

Welcome to The Healthy Bottom Line

Healthcare

Inclusive Care

MarketScale
May 22, 2025
Brent Smith
Diverse Patient
diversity
Elevance Health
+more


Sammy Gonzalez, Regional Vice President at Elevance Health, joins Brent for a deeply personal and impactful conversation on health equity and inclusive care. Sammy shares a powerful story of medical misdiagnosis tied to cultural assumptions, underscoring how bias—even unintentional—can hinder care quality. He highlights Elevance’s work to improve diversity in provider networks, enhance cultural competency, and empower members to choose care that aligns with their identity and lived experience. Initiatives like My Diverse Patient and tools within the Sydney app are helping bridge gaps in trust, communication, and equitable outcomes. A must-listen on making healthcare truly inclusive.

Recent Episodes

pcp
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PCP Attribution Analysis

Dr. Sam Ambewadikar, RVP and Medical Director at Anthem National Accounts, joins Brent to unpack the power of primary care attribution analysis—a tool he helped pioneer to spotlight the clinical and financial impact of members not having an established PCP. Drawing from his background as a practicing pediatrician and claims analytics leader, Dr. Sam shares…

sydney health
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Sydney Health Demo

In this episode, Christina Firouztash, Executive Advisor of Digital Solutions at Anthem, gives a dynamic walkthrough of the Sydney Health app—Anthem’s flagship digital member experience. Christina showcases how Sydney delivers personalized, simple, and equitable navigation across benefits, including virtual care, pharmacy, financial transparency, and social services access. From contextual chatbots and ID card access to…

pharmacy
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Pharmacy Part 1

In this episode, Brent chats with Katie Brennan, National Sales Director at CarelonRx, about making pharmacy benefits more accessible, consistent, and member-friendly. Katie spotlights Carelon new advanced home delivery model, which brings the pharmacy counter—and the pharmacist—into the member’s home. With fewer retail pharmacies offering extended hours and many patients lacking reliable transportation, CarelonRx is…

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