Copyright Arkansas Online
Your browser does not support the audio element. Arkansas Blue Cross and Blue Shield, the state's largest health insurer, will join with Oregon-based nonprofit health insurance company Cambia Health Solutions in a strategic affiliation agreement, the insurer announced Thursday, ending months-long discussion between the two insurers amid rising financial challenges for Blue Cross. Blue Cross will continue to operate as an Arkansas-based mutual health insurance company and members will retain their current coverage, according to a news release. It's expected to close in 2026. Under the partnership agreement, which is still subject to regulatory approval, the two insurers will share operations teams and technology. According to a news release, the agreement will "improve and extend capabilities" for the Arkansas insurer. Strategic affiliation agreements are not new for Cambia, a group of health companies formed in 1996. It's affiliated health plans include four Blue Cross licensees in the Western United States. In June, the company announced a strategic affiliation agreement with Blue Cross Blue Shield of North Dakota, subject to regulatory approval. Under the agreement, expected to close next year, Blue Cross of North Dakota will be managed and operated by Cambia -- along with Blue Cross' employees in that state -- but will maintain its local plan name and board of directors. Cambia covers around 3.6 million members and employs 4,600 people, according to a company fact sheet. Discussions of the deal were first reported by Arkansas Business in January. That same month, the company eliminated 75 jobs -- or 2% of its workforce -- amid rising costs, declining membership and rising demand for services. The company posted a loss of more than $100 million on falling revenue through Sept. 30 of last year, according to a financial update filed with the Arkansas Insurance Department. That compares with net income of $94.7 million in the first three quarters of last year. Lucas Dufalla is a Report for America Corps member. Financial support for this coverage came from the Community Journalism Project.
