Stephen Harris Named President of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois

Succeeds Steve Hamman at States' Largest Health Plan

CHICAGO, March 31, 2022 /PRNewswire/ -- Blue Cross and Shield of Illinois (BCBSIL), a division of Health Care Service Corporation (HCSC), today announced Stephen Harris has been named the new Illinois president. Stephen will succeed Steve Hamman, who has left the company to pursue new endeavors. He will begin this new position immediately.

"Stephen has been instrumental in the company's ambitious growth strategy and has done tremendous work in stabilizing and growing our Medicaid business," said Maurice Smith, HCSC president and CEO. "He is an exceptional leader and will be outstanding in his new role working to improve the quality of life for Illinoisans by working with key partners in aligning the health care system around our members' and customers' varying needs."

Stephen has over 20 years of experience spearheading business development and performance improvement initiatives for top health care organizations. During his time at HCSC, he led the company's Medicaid line of business; responsible for driving growth, operational excellence, and financial performance. Prior to joining HCSC, Stephen was Regional Vice President of Health Plan Operations at Molina Healthcare. In his new role, he will lead a team that manages the Plan's commercial markets sales including group and individual, provider relations and network contracting, care management, regulatory and customer relationships and BCBSIL's hyperlocal community engagement initiatives.

"HCSC has an outstanding leadership team that is a result of a long-standing focus on attracting and growing top talent," said Smith. "Our continued focus on building our leadership bench strength allows us to capitalize on our position as a leader in the health care industry and to continue to deliver outstanding value to our customers, communities, and key partners."

"It is an exciting time to lead an organization that is well positioned to drive significant change in health care and continue to expand access to health care by strengthening relationships and working in close collaboration with providers, employers and other partners," said Harris. "I am both honored and excited to continue to work with the talented leaders at BCBSIL to build on its strong foundation to innovate and make the healthcare system work better for everyone."

Stephen is a certified public accountant and holds an MBA from the University of North Carolina's Kenan-Flagler Business School and a BA from Michigan State University.

About Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois (BCBSIL) is committed to expanding access to quality, cost-effective health care to as many people as possible in Illinois. Covering nearly 9 million people, BCBSIL is dedicated to innovation and exploring, nurturing, and activating future possibilities to make the health care system work better for our members and our communities. BCBSIL is a division of Health Care Service Corporation, a Mutual Legal Reserve Company and an Independent Licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

SOURCE Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois