In 2020, we shared the story of Michael McCollum, a UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Texas member in the Houston area. Michael spent decades dealing with untreated depression, anxiety and substance abuse. This video tells the story of how Michael reclaimed his life with the support of Claudia Dominguez, Recovery Resiliency Market Lead, UnitedHealthcare Community Plan of Texas.
Claudia helped Michael obtain housing, a wheelchair and therapy to recover his ability to walk and speak after his stroke. Michael’s drive to reclaim his life led to UnitedHealthcare presenting him with the ‘Overcomer of the Year’ award. This award included a grant which provided Michael with the financial support necessary to gain an education relevant to a mental health vocation. Wanting to pay the gift of support forward, Michael’s new dream was to become a mental health peer specialist.
With hard work and dedication, Michael received his Mental Health Peer Specialist certification from the Texas Certification Board on September 20, 2022. Now a peer specialist himself, Michael is grateful for the support that UnitedHealthcare offered him and the confidence that Claudia had in his recovery. He said, “Without UnitedHealthcare’s attendance to me, I wouldn’t be where I am today. You all made this journey so much easier.”
