Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina (BCBSNC) will host a press conference to announce Strive to Revive, an initiative that is making available 20 Automated External Defibrillators (AED) to Charlotte area places of worship. The program is designed to specifically impact houses of worship that serve populations largely at risk of health disparity or poor health outcomes.

Thomas W. Ross, president of Davidson College and former executive director of the Z. Smith Reynolds Foundation, has been named to the Board of Trustees of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina. The BCBSNC board consists of up to 16 community leaders from across North Carolina with diverse backgrounds in health care, business, finance and education.

BCBSNC is continuing to focus on improving health care quality by recognizing select North Carolina hospitals for excellence in spinal surgery, knee replacements, and hip replacements. The program will help BCBSNC members choose facilities that meet high standards for these common procedures.

Last night's passage by the U.S. House of a health care reform bill that will extend access to millions of Americans who need health insurance is historic. It's a step in the right direction. However, there is still a lot of work to do to give Americans a health care system that they can both depend on and afford.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina (BCBSNC) has been named to the Top 50 Companies for Executive Women by the National Association for Female Executives (NAFE). This is the first time that BCBSNC has been named a NAFE Top Company, which serves as a national benchmark for corporate America.

In 2009 Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina (BCBSNC) continued to see stability in its customer base and financial performance, despite a difficult economy.

J. Bradley “Brad” Wilson – a North Carolina native with extensive public service, community and business experience – has been named as Chief Executive Officer of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina by the company’s Board of Trustees. The move, effective immediately, follows Wilson’s appointment as company President in November 2009.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina (BCBSNC) is leading an effort to reward health care quality in North Carolina by introducing a new reimbursement model for participating primary care physicians.

In an effort to help reduce childhood obesity and prevent future cases of diabetes, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina (BCBSNC) is participating in the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association’s Pediatric Obesity and Diabetes Prevention Pilot Program.

PARTNERS National Health Plans of North Carolina, Inc. (PARTNERS), a fully owned subsidiary of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of North Carolina (BCBSNC), has expanded its Blue Medicare HMO and Blue Medicare PPO network to include 70 North Carolina counties. These Medicare Advantage plans offer lower out-of-pocket costs and more benefits than traditional Medicare, including preventive care and routine vision care.