Blue Cross
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For the UK animal charity, see The Blue Cross.
Blue Cross is a name used by an association of health insurance plans throughout the United States. It was developed in 1929, by Justin Ford Kimball, at Baylor University in Dallas, Texas. The first plan guaranteed teachers 21 days of hospital care for $6 a year. The plan was extended to other employee groups in Dallas, and then nationally. The American Hospital Association (AHA) adopted the Blue Cross symbol in 1939 as the emblem for plans meeting certain standards. In 1960 the AHA commission was superseded by the Blue Cross Association. Affiliation with the AHA was severed in 1972. In 1982, Blue Cross merged with the National Association of Blue Shield Plans to create the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.
Every US state and Canadian province has a Blue Cross plan (some larger states have several, including New York and Pennsylvania). Some of these state plans have merged to achieve economies of scale. The largest such merged plan is the 13-state WellPoint. Others include CareFirst in the Mid-Atlantic and Premera in the Pacific Northwest.