Blue Cross Blue Shield Association

Blue Cross Blue Shield Association (BCBSA) is a federation of 36 separate health insurance organizations and companies, providing health insurance in the United States to more than 106 million people. Blue Cross and Blue Shield insurance companies are licensees, independent of the association and traditionally of each other, offering insurance plans within defined regions under one or both of the association's brands. Blue Cross Blue Shield insurers offer some form of health insurance coverage in every U.S. state. They also act as administrators of Medicare in many states or regions of the U.S. and provide coverage to state government employees as well as to the federal government employees under a nationwide option of the Federal Employees Health Benefits Program. Blue Cross was founded in 1929 and became the Blue Cross Association in 1960, while Blue Shield emerged in 1939 and the Blue Shield Association was created in 1948. The two organizations merged in 1982.