By Joey Johnston

It began as an idea. It jumped into a conversation. And it has matured into a full-fledged collaboration.

Florida Blue, a valued community partner of the Tampa Bay Sports Commission since 2014, was seeking to integrate its educational program called the “working uninsured’’ into the Hospitality and Tourism Industries— a formidable population indeed when you consider there are more than 80,000 workers in Tampa Bay’s small business sector that many are not on an employer’s insurance plan. What’s more, there are more than 361,000 part-time employees in the Tampa Bay market.

Health coverage is generally not provided to part-time employees, and it isn’t a mandated offering for small businesses with fewer than 50 employees.

So what does that mean in a place such as Tampa Bay, which is fueled by seasonal, contract or part-time workers in the vital fields of tourism, hospitality, culinary, entertainment, caregiving, emerging technologies, real-estate sales, and sports-event operations?

“There was a gap that was creating a real problem for people in so many industries,’’ said Stephen Brocato, Florida Blue’s senior director of business development for the organization’s West Region. “Everyone agreed there was a great, great need because so many people were uninsured. And now we’re so grateful that the power of this community has pushed us toward real solutions.’’

In 2022, Brocato’s idea was encouraged and heavily influenced by Dave Pizzo, the Florida Blue market president and a member of the TBSC’s board of directors. Brocato met with Rob Higgins, then the TBSC’s executive director, who was recently named CEO of Athletics at the University of South Florida. They roughly estimated that out of nearly 14,000 sports tourism workers, many were without coverage or uninsured. So there was an immediate call to action.

But it didn’t stop there. Higgins connected Brocato with Bob Morrison, executive director of the Hillsborough County Hotel and Motel Association, which represents one of the area’s most important industries that largely relies on a part-time and seasonal workforce.

Morrison promptly consulted with Santiago Corrada, president and CEO of Visit Tampa Bay, a nonprofit organization that promotes Hillsborough County’s tourism and convention business, another key industry that revolves around seasonal and part-time workers. Coincidentally, Corrada’s wife, Shana, is executive director of Dance Tampa Bay, which supports the area’s dance community and artists. She was interested. After all, what happens to an injured professional dancer who doesn’t have insurance? She saw a need there, too.

“It has truly been a beautiful thing,’’ said Brocato, who has worked closely with Phil Lee, Florida Blue’s current market president, to keep the program growing and thriving. “We have been innovating, creating and solving together.’’

A SPIRIT OF COLLABORATION

That’s nothing new for the TBSC.

“Collaboration defines Team Tampa Bay, and it is in our DNA,’’ TBSC vice president of events Claire Lessinger said. “To maintain a thriving community and an ecosystem of productive businesses, it’s extremely important to keep employees happy, healthy, and engaged.

“As we learned more about Florida Blue’s initiative and the desire to address opportunities within the hospitality and retail sectors, we helped connect Florida Blue with the Hotel/Motel Association, Visit Tampa Bay and others that could help support the goal and mission.’’

Florida Blue’s working uninsured program is based on three pillars:

Education, Access and Affordability.

It begins with education. The program is driven by relationship-building educators, not a sales force. Organizations such as the TBSC, the Hotel/Motel Association and Visit Tampa Bay get the word out through social media, newsletters and occasional workshops. None of them has any obligation or places any additional burden on the employers. But it begins the discovery process, especially for people who don’t have the proper information on the benefits of insurance and the fact that they now have access to an affordable program.

The educational programs cover work/life balance, stress, mental health, and various diseases, especially those that are prevalent in specific ZIP codes where the programs are offered. Florida Blue works with various chambers of commerce and local associations, tailoring its program along multicultural lines when necessary.

In the hotel/motel industry, Brocato said Florida Blue learned there was often an affordability problem, where workers could cover themselves, but family plans were out of reach. In many cases, Florida Blue worked with international hotel brands, getting approvals and working with human resource committees to develop programs — videos and information presented in English and Spanish — that were launched through the hotel’s internal communications channels.

Employers become enthusiastic partners because they know affordable insurance offerings will help the morale and retention of valuable workers.

“This is entirely voluntary, and it places no burden on the employer, so it really is a win-win proposition,’’ Brocato said. “We haven’t had to advocate too much because the need is clearly there. When the need is clearly seen by leadership then so far No one has ever said no. It creates sustainable businesses, and it’s an incredible value-add for the employers and their workers. It’s an investment in people and it aligns to our mission.’’

Morrison and Corrada said Florida Blue’s programs have been valuable additions and well-received by all of their constituents.

“Our hotels have worked to make their full benefit packages responsive and robust, but we’ve never had tools to help the part-time employees and address their needs,’’ Morrison said. “Eight months of the year are an aggressive and busy time for hotels. But when it isn’t as busy, how do we keep talented members of our teams connected with the kind of benefits we know they need when they aren’t working. Can we find such a vehicle? Florida Blue has provided a wonderful answer to a very real dilemma.

“The universal reaction has been an acknowledgment of the issue, an absence of a strategy to attack it, and then the realization that Florida Blue’s positioning of this as an educational initiative has become a winning formula. When employers learn this is free to them and not an additional burden on their operational bottom line, it is greeted with great enthusiasm. And it also addressed our allied members, the small business owners who are providing services and products to our hotels. It’s wonderful to see this option available to them.’’

Morrison said the impact of Florida Blue’s program was driven home to him when he considered the scenario of a hotel banquet staff worker.

WORKING UNINSURED CHECKLIST

“We do a Tampa Bay market compensation survey and it indicates that the compensation for a banquet staffer in our hotels falls between $38 and $60 an hour when you add the salary and tips,’’ Morrison said. “That’s a reputable hourly wage, and it conflicts with the typical notion that folks working at hotels are paid pennies on the dollar.

“But there’s also a three-to-four-month period where there isn’t a demand for those banquet-related services. How do you retain that talented pool of outstanding workers in that part-time capacity because you run the risk of losing them? Florida Blue helps to provide a bridge to that gap and it also speaks to those full-time employees who can’t afford the family group coverage. I am really impressed and appreciative of Florida Blue’s insight and willingness to tackle this issue that has been staring us in the face.’’

LIVING THE MISSION

Corrada said Florida Blue’s program has provided security for a workforce that’s valuable to Tampa Bay’s economy.

“Look, health care can be scary and a bit overwhelming,’’ Corrada said. “It can also be difficult to navigate. This program can be tailored to fit individual needs. Many people are pleasantly surprised because they didn’t think anything like would be available for their lives. The fact that we’re able to take care of so many people like this in fields like tourism or sports or the arts — our neighbors, colleagues and friends, really — it again spotlights what a special community we have here in Tampa Bay.’’

Corrada said it evokes the spirit of the TBSC slogan:

Gameday. Every Day.

“It’s more than a slogan,’’ Corrada said. “I hear it all the time from colleagues from other communities. They say, ‘How is it that all the decision-makers in Tampa Bay get along so well and can row in the same direction?’ What we have is genuine and it’s real. All of us do work together for the common good, and that’s typified by the program that is offered by Florida Blue.’’

The program's integration into the Tourism sector began with a conversation between Brocato and Higgins. It has mushroomed into a Florida Blue program that is now being offered in 14 counties.

By 2026, Brocato said Florida Blue’s program will have 30 partners that represent early learning coalitions, hospitality and tourism, real estate, entrepreneurs, food and beverage, sports, lodging, nonprofits, economic development councils, small business owners, startup incubators, staffing agencies, assisted living trade group, technology, and professional services.

“Florida Blue is a tremendous partner of the Tampa Bay Sports Commission and continues to be a loyal supporter of our community impact initiatives and loyal youth sports programs,’’ Lessinger said. “It is very important to us to find mutually beneficial ways to support our community partners. We helped leverage our platform and community connectivity to amplify and bring awareness to their working uninsured program, a very important initiative providing pathways to affordable coverage for working individuals.

“We are proud to have played a small role in educating our community, our partners, and our followers about the good work that Florida Blue is doing on an ongoing basis.’’

Get the full scope of the program below!