MADISON, WI (Mar. 8, 2022) ─ The Alliance promoted Deb Kunferman to Vice President of Network Development and Provider Relations, effective Feb. 24, 2022.
Kunferman joined The Alliance in 2013 as Provider Relations Manager and was responsible for developing, managing, and maintaining the provider network for employer health benefits plans. In 2018, Kunferman was promoted to Director of Network Development. Kunferman now leads the team responsible for constructing a provider network by providing direction and oversight of network development strategies, including maintaining and growing provider partnerships.
“Deb has a passion for our mission – to improve the affordability and quality of health care for employers and their employees and families,” said Cheryl DeMars, President and CEO of The Alliance. “Deb has been instrumental in growing our cooperative over the past decade. She’s a bridge-builder between employers and providers, and forging these partnerships is critical to making real progress.”
Kunferman’s new appointment is strategically significant because The Alliance provider networks give self-funded employers broad access to hospitals, doctors, and other health care professionals across The Midwest. The custom networks also provide employers with data they need to control costs by educating employees on where to receive high-quality, low-cost care.
Prior to joining The Alliance, Kunferman served as CEO at Cumberland Memorial Hospital where she oversaw the fiscal budget, 26 departments, and 285 employees. Other previous roles include CEO at Oakleaf Surgical Hospital and Executive Director for Valley Health Plan, an insurance plan in Eau Claire, WI.
Kunferman earned her Master’s degree at the University of Wisconsin–Eau Claire and has served on several Boards in the Eau Claire community over the course of her career, including United Way and Children’s Service Society, and she was elected as the first female president of Kiwanis Club in the organization’s 42-year history.
The Alliance serves as the voice for self-funded employers who want more control over their health care costs. They provide transparent, creative approaches to network and benefit plan design to unlock savings where others can’t – or won’t – using Smarter Networks℠ and sophisticated data mining and analysis. The Alliance remains a trusted, objective partner for its 300+ employers and their brokers who seek improved access to high-quality health care through a network of 34,000 health care providers and doctors across the Midwest.
To learn more about The Alliance, visit: https://the-alliance.org/
Contact:
Craig Sauer
Marketing & Communications Specialist
Phone: 608.210.6638
E-mail: csauer@the-alliance.org