Daniel Hilferty Becomes Independence Blue Cross President and CEO

PHILADELPHIA, Dec. 15, 2010 /PRNewswire/ -- Daniel J. Hilferty today succeeds Joseph A. Frick as president and chief executive officer of Independence Blue Cross (IBC). Hilferty, 54, has served as executive vice president and president of IBC's Health Markets since January 1, 2010, and has been with an Independence Blue Cross affiliate for 14 years. To his new role, Hilferty brings more than 25 years of experience in health care and government affairs.

Frick, 58, will maintain a leadership role with IBC, serving as a vice chair of its Board of Directors and leading a newly created board committee that will focus on strategic initiatives.

"I am excited about our organization's future," said Hilferty. "With our seasoned and committed team of professionals, innovative products and services, and the broadest network of hospitals and physicians in our region, we are well positioned to continue to deliver on our mission to lower the cost of health care, raise the quality of care, and widen access to care.  Customers can count on us to continue to provide flexible, affordable health plans, offer a strong and expanding array of other health services, and build progressive relationships with physicians and hospitals to enhance the health and wellness of the people and communities we serve," Hilferty said.

"Dan is an experienced and passionate leader who clearly understands the complex issues and challenges of the health insurance industry, which will be especially critical as we navigate IBC through the uncharted waters of health care reform," said IBC's Board Chair Walter D'Alessio. "Building successful companies is Dan's hallmark. On behalf of the IBC Board of Directors, we look forward to working with him and the IBC management team in the years ahead."

Hilferty became executive vice president and president of IBC's Health Markets after serving 13 years as president and CEO of the AmeriHealth Mercy Family of Companies, which is jointly owned by IBC and Mercy Health System. Under Hilferty's leadership, AmeriHealth Mercy grew into the largest organization of Medicaid managed care plans in the United States, touching 6.5 million lives in 14 states across the nation.

As head of IBC's Health Markets, he has overseen sales and marketing, and had profit-and-loss responsibility for IBC's Blue Cross business in the five-county Philadelphia region, including Personal Choice and Keystone health plans. In addition, he has overseen IBC's subsidiary operations: AmeriHealth, which provides health coverage to customers outside the five-county area; Independence Administrators and AmeriHealth Administrators, which provide health benefits administration to self-funded organizations with more than 100 employees in the five-county area and nationally; CompServices, Inc., which offers administrative services to self-insured workers' compensation programs in the tri-state area; and AmeriHealth Casualty, which offers workers' compensation insurance, life and disability insurance, third-party claims administration, and disability management in the tri-state area and Maryland.

Hilferty will also become an IBC board member and a member of the boards of the Greater Philadelphia Chamber of Commerce, the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association, and America's Health Insurance plans.

About Independence Blue Cross

Independence Blue Cross is a leading health insurer in southeastern Pennsylvania. Nationwide, Independence Blue Cross and its affiliates provide coverage to nearly 3.3 million people. For more than 70 years, Independence Blue Cross has offered high-quality health care coverage tailored to meet the changing needs of members, employers, and health care professionals. Independence Blue Cross' HMO and PPO health care plans have consistently received the highest ratings from the National Committee for Quality Assurance. Independence Blue Cross is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

SOURCE Independence Blue Cross