Message from the President

As we wrap up 2025 and enter the holiday season, we'd like to pause and extend our warmest wishes to you and your organization. This time of year reminds us how grateful we are to have such an engaged, thoughtful and supportive MBGH community. Your partnership is truly the heart of everything we do.

Looking ahead to 2026, we are filled with anticipation and excitement for the opportunities to come. Together, we will continue to elevate the employer voice, spark innovation, and create meaningful connections that strengthen our collective impact.



Wishing you a joyful holiday season and a bright, successful year ahead. As always, please reach out to me or any member of the MBGH team with questions, ideas, or simply to connect—our team is always here to help!

Planning for 2026

Pulse of the Purchaser Employer Survey Results

MBGH is leveraging the results of the 2025 employer health benefits trends survey to shape programming in 2026.

If you haven't viewed the survey results, check it out! The survey provides valuable insights into employer challenges, opportunities, and strategies related to medical, pharmacy, fiduciary requirements, and so much more.

What's coming up in 2026?

2026 Educational Programs and Webinars

January 28, 2026

Employer-Only

Full-Day Forum

Digital Innovation + Personalization =

A New Era of Employee

Wellbeing & Engagement

March 11, 2026

Full-Day Forum

Mental Strength

at Work:

From Patchwork Solutions to

Purposeful Strategies

June 24, 2026

Full-Day Program

Employer Forum on Pharmacy Benefits, Specialty Drugs

and CGTs

Additional educational programs are listed below. Visit the MBGH Upcoming Programs webpage for details as they become available.

• February 12, 2026 Employer-Only Webinar: Driving Better Outcomes Through Centers of Excellence Partnerships
• February 26, 2026 Webinar: GLP1's & Beyond: Employer Strategies for Navigating the New Frontier
• September 23, 2026 Forum: The Transparency Effect: Data Access, Fiduciary Duty & Lost Dollars
• …and many more programs to be added throughout the year  

Employer Member-Only Quarterly Roundtables

MBGH will be hosting one-hour virtual employer member roundtables in 2026. Each roundtable will feature content experts who will facilitate interactive discussions on current issues and hot topics.

In 2025, employer members registered for the year-long roundtable series; this year, members will register for each individual roundtable. Check the Upcoming Programs webpage for details as they become available.

JW Marriott Chicago

May 4, 2026: Employer-Only Pre-Conference

May 5-6, 2026: Annual Conference

Save the date! Plan to join fellow employers at the MBGH Annual Conference where we are getting set to shake things up! As one of the most influential health benefits conferences in the nation, we’re putting our Employer Blueprint for Action into motion!

Attendee Comments

Registration will open in January.

2025 Highlights

Employer Members: MBGH will be offering complimentary registration for one HR benefits professional per member company and discounted rates for additional registrants! Details will be shared in January.

MBGH Member Orientation Meetings

MBGH is hosting monthly virtual MBGH member orientation meetings to share the vast benefits of MBGH membership with new member organizations. If you haven't attended an orientation and would like a tour of MBGH benefits, be sure to join us! Registration for 2026 orientation meetings will be collected on the MBGH Events webpage later this month.

Employer Resources Continuing in 2026

Employer Connect

Our member sharing portal, Employer Connect, continues to provide an avenue for MBGH employer members to share best practices and seek input from peers. Some discussions this past year: medical plan claims audits, pharmacy RFPs, long-term care benefits, legislation, vendor experiences, and more.

Community Initiatives

For more than 45 years, MBGH has been committed to supporting community health initiatives by bringing together members of the business, hospital, physician, health plan, government, consumer and voluntary association sectors to support improved health and quality of care for all populations.

MBGH Employer Resources

MBGH provides employers with action briefs and toolkits for strategic decision making. In 2026, MBGH will launch new employer resources on:

• GLP-1s
• Centers of Excellence
• GI-related Autoimmune Disorders & IBD
• Hemophilia
• Cell & Gene Therapies
• Today’s Vaccination Environment

MBGH Partner Resources

MBGH partner members and non-profit organizations are invited to provide topic-specific resources for MBGH employer members. Each resource is thoroughly vetted and posted on our Partner Resources webpage. Some recently submitted resources cover topics such as: chronic conditions, cell and gene therapies and best practices for self-insured employers.

Midwest Health Purchasers Collaborative

Through the Midwest Health Purchasers Collaborative (MHPC), MBGH members have access to a suite of health benefit services at reduced and competitive prices with each of our vetted partners. These best-in-class vendors provide employers with customized solutions to fit their company’s overall population health engagement strategy.

2025 Year in Review

New MBGH Members in 2025

In 2025, MBGH proudly welcomed 18 new employer member organizations. We are grateful for the diversity of our membership and the opportunity to share best practices and learn from each other. That’s the Power of MBGH!

3M

Arup

bartaco

Duly Health & Care

Employees First

Endeavor Health

Follett

HERO

Hilmar Cheese

Hyatt

Open Text

Rate

Securitas Technology

Southern Illinois Healthcare

Taylor Corporation

University of Chicago

Zebra Technologies

Zurich North America

New Board of Directors Members

In 2025, MBGH welcomed four new board members to our dynamic board of industry experts and progressive employers who dedicate their time and expertise to furthering the mission of MBGH. Welcome, and thank you!

Amanda Gebert

Director - Benefits

Sargento Cheese

Anoop Mansukhani

Corporate Account Executive

Merck

Susan Melcher

Vice President, Total Rewards

& HR Analytics

Medical College of Wisconsin

Rosemary Sams

Senior Manager

Employee Benefits

Univar Solutions

Educational Programs & Webinars



MBGH conducted 14 educational programs and trainings in 2025. Program recordings and summaries are archived on our Past Educational Programs webpage.

Employer Member-Only Roundtables

MBGH employer members enjoyed eight virtual employer-only roundtables in 2025. Employers engaged in lively discussions about legislation, drug formularies, mental health parity, benefits design, benefits claims, fiduciary responsibility and hospital safety.

MBGH 45th Annual Conference

The MBGH 45th Annual Conference was a roaring success! We gathered to learn, collaborate, network, and simply share some quality time together. See what attendees had to say about this year's conference:

• The BEST health care conference in the nation
• The vibe was so positive
• Tremendous conversations and engagement
• The networking was great
• The energy was something I haven't felt at a conference in a long while

Employer Action Briefs & Snapshots

In 2025, MBGH launched five new or updated action briefs, three new snapshots and one vaccine statement. Click images to view these resources and be sure to check out all of MBGH's resources.

MBGH in the News - 2025

In 2025, 16 articles about MBGH events, initiatives and staff were published in publications including the Chicago Tribune, Crain's Chicago Business, Benefits PRO, Employee Benefits News, MedCity News, and more. View recent articles, press releases and news on the MBGH News webpage.

MBGH Staff Updates

Welcome New Staff Member

Erin Pataky joined the MBGH team in mid-November as Director of Member Initiatives. You may recognize Erin as a frequent attendee at MBGH events and as an industry expert in the health and wellness consulting space. In this new role, Erin will be focused on leading employer-directed projects and as member of the MBGH senior leadership team, she’ll contribute to planning and executing educational programming as well as membership activities.

Erin Pataky

Director of

Member Initiatives

MBGH

New Mountains to Climb - Retirement Announcement

After 7-1/2 years of dedication, direction and uplifting energy at MBGH, Dawn Weddle, MBGH Vice President, is retiring effective January 1, 2026.

In true Dawn fashion, she’s heading into this next phase of life in full “go-go-go” mode. Congratulations, Dawn! May your retirement be filled with breathtaking peaks and exciting adventures.

The MBGH staff wishes you all a happy holiday season and a healthy 2026.

Please reach out to any MBGH

team member with new ideas, feedback,

or just to say hello!

Bottom Row: Samantha Clark, Cheryl Larson &

John Butler

Top Row: Mark Pfleger, Paula Sheehan, Allison Larsen, Mindy McBee, Erin Pataky & Lori Hurtt

Not Pictured: Dawn Weddle