BCBSA Board of Directors Elects Highmark Health President and Chief Executive Officer David L. Holmberg as Chairman
CHICAGO, Dec. 3, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- The Blue Cross Blue Shield Association (BCBSA) announced today that David L. Holmberg, president and chief executive officer of Highmark Health, has been elected chairman of the BCBSA Board of Directors. BCBSA is the national federation of 36 independent, community-based and locally operated Blue Cross and Blue Shield (BCBS) companies that together cover one in three Americans.
As chairman, Holmberg will assume leadership of BCBSA's governing body and will preside over quarterly meetings of the Association's board of directors. This governing body provides strategic guidance and oversight for the Association. Holmberg will also work with his predecessor Paul Markovich, president and CEO of Blue Shield of California, to conduct a national search for BCBSA President and CEO Scott P. Serota's successor. Serota announced his intention to retire at the end of 2020 earlier this year.
Since May 2014 Holmberg has served as president and chief executive officer of Highmark Health, a $19 billion integrated health and wellness organization that includes one of America's largest Blue Cross Blue Shield insurers and a growing regional hospital and physician network. Based in Pittsburgh, Highmark Health operates through its affiliated dental and other healthcare information technology solutions as well as a hospital system.
One of the nation's most influential and transformative health care executives, Holmberg is helping to shape the future of this fast-evolving industry. He has proactively and regularly engaged with trade associations, regulators, peer organizations, strategic partners and government entities — both regional and national — to resolve critical health care issues and ensure the equitable treatment of Highmark Health's patients, policyholders and business customers.
In addition to guiding Highmark Health through the tumultuous post-ACA years, Holmberg has addressed other critical business issues during his tenure as he implemented a bold transformation strategy designed to lead the change in the health care experience for consumers by providing affordable, accessible, high-quality, community-based medicine and coverage options. Part of that strategy included investment in the expansion of Allegheny Health Network, to include eight hospitals in western Pennsylvania, as well as five multispecialty medical malls. Further, in 2019, Holmberg successfully negotiated an agreement with the Pennsylvania Attorney General to provide residents of western Pennsylvania continued access to the region's two leading health systems.
Because of Highmark Health's differentiated position in the industry as a vertically integrated payer-provider, and his own unconventional path to leadership, Holmberg has a unique perspective and insight into the full scope of the health care continuum — from private insurance to government and military insurance to medical, dental and vision care.
"David's tremendous vision to integrate the payer and care delivery sides of the health care industry has brought true innovation not only to Highmark Blue Cross Blue Shield members, but to The Blues® nationwide," Serota said. "David's leadership, commitment and broad industry knowledge will help guide our companies as we continue to improve access, affordability and quality of health care – for the health of America."
As a member of the BCBSA Board of Directors, Holmberg served as chairman of the Long Term Strategy Committee and Market Solutions Committee. He also serves on the board of directors of America's Health Insurance Plans. "I am honored to be elected as chairman and look forward to working with my colleagues on the Board of Directors to continue the important work of the Association during a time of unprecedented volatility and urgency to transform the health care industry in the United States to better serve BCBS members and consumers," said Holmberg.
BCBSA is headquartered in Chicago with an additional office in Washington, D.C. Holmberg will serve as chairman until the annual BCBSA board of directors meeting in November 2020.
To read Holmberg's bio, visit https://www.highmarkhealth.org/hmk/about/leadership.shtml.
About Highmark Health
Highmark Health, a Pittsburgh, PA-based company, is the lead company in an enterprise that employs more than 35,000 people who serve millions of Americans across the country and is the second largest integrated health care delivery and financing network in the nation based on revenue. Highmark Health is the parent company of Highmark Inc., a hospital system, and other businesses. Highmark Inc. and its subsidiaries and affiliates provide health insurance to more than 4.4 million members in Pennsylvania, West Virginia, and Delaware as well as dental insurance, and related health products through a national network of diversified businesses. Highmark Health includes an integrated delivery network that includes eight hospitals, more than 2,300 affiliated physicians, ambulatory surgery centers, an employed physician organization, home and community-based health services, a research institute, a group purchasing organization, and health and wellness pavilions in western Pennsylvania. Highmark's other affiliated businesses focus on meeting the information technology platform and other business needs of the Highmark Health enterprise as well as unaffiliated health insurance plans by providing proven business processes, expert knowledge, and integrated cloud-based platforms. To learn more, visit www.highmarkhealth.org.
About Blue Cross Blue Shield Association
The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association is a national federation of 36 independent, community-based and locally operated Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies that collectively provide health care coverage for one in three Americans. BCBSA provides health care insights through The Health of America Report series and the national BCBS Health Indexsm. For more information on BCBSA and its member companies, please visit BCBS.com. We also encourage you to connect with us on Facebook, check out our videos on YouTube and follow us on Twitter.
SOURCE Blue Cross Blue Shield Association
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