Blue Cross Insurance - Providing Health Insurance For One Third Of All Americans.

Health insurance in the United States today is bigprovide cover throughout the United States, as
business and there can be no doubt that, despitewell as in the Canadian province, for millions of
its humble beginnings, Blue Cross insurance is oneAmericans (it is estimated that one in three
of today's major players. This article examinesAmericans now carry a Blue Cross and Blue Shield
the incredible growth of the Blue Cross and Bluecard) and makes Blue Cross and Blue Shield the
Shield Association.country's largest healthcare provider.
Blue Cross insurance was the creation of JustinBut Blue Cross and Blue Shield does much more
Ford Kimball who, in 1929, devised a plan tothan simply provide medical insurance cover on a
provide hospital care for school teachers in Dallas.group and individual basis.
The plan provided teachers with cover for up toThe Association is now also the administrator for
twenty one days in hospitalization each year for aSocial Security in a large number of states and
premium of six dollars.often provides group cover for state government
From these humble beginnings the plan spread,employees and for employees of the Federal
first throughout Dallas and other areas of Texasgovernment. As a result, officials within Blue Cross
and then nationwide, providing cover forand Blue Shield work closely with government
employees across an ever widening range ofhealth policy makers at the very top levels of
employment.government and the Association plays a significant
Just ten years after it was born the Blue Crosspart in influencing the direction of government
symbol was adopted by the American Hospitalhealth policy.
Association for plans that met certain standardsIt is amazing to think that a plan originally devised
and this formal recognition provided Blue Crosssimply to provide cover for hospital bills for a
insurance with a springboard for further growth.small group of school teachers in Dallas has now
In 1960 the growth in popularity of Blue Crossdeveloped not only into a nationwide plan providing
was such that the Blue Cross Associationcover for just about anything you can imagine
superseded the American Hospital Associationfrom critical illness through long-term care,
commission and some twelve years later severeddisability, life cover, dental cover, pharmacy cover
all ties with the commission.and even cover for worldwide travel, but has also
Finally, in 1982, the Blue Cross Association mergedspawned an organization that is at the very heart
with the National Association of Blue Shield Plansof healthcare system of the United States.
and the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association weWith such phenomenal growth in the past
know today was formed.seventy five years and such a strong position
The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association is intoday one can only imagine that Blue Cross and
effect a trade association for some thirty eightBlue Shield will continue to grow in the years
independent and locally, or regionally, operatedahead proving yet more and more cover for an
Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans. These togetherever growing number of customers.