Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont Appoints New President and CEO

Berlin Don George, a Barre native with more than 20 years experience in health care and health financing, has been named President and Chief Executive Officer of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont (BCBSVT) and its affiliate HMO, The Vermont Health Plan (TVHP). The appointment to lead BCBSVT, which has been named by US News and World Report as one of Americas Top 50 Health Plans is effective immediately.
Mr. George, 51, had served as interim President and CEO of the state s largest health plan since the retirement of William R. Milnes, Jr., last November. He joined BCBSVT in 1993 and has held various and increasing levels of responsibility during his career with the plan. Most recently, he was Vice President of the company s Managed Health Systems division and Senior Vice President and Chief Operating Officer of TVHP.
He was chosen from a field of candidates drawn from a nationwide search of the health insurance and health care industry, and was selected unanimously by BCBSVT s Board of Directors to replace Mr. Milnes, who stepped down after a more than 30-year career with the BCBS system and a successful 10-year tenure at BCBSVT.
We are extremely pleased to appoint a leader with Don s experience, vision and understanding of the uniqueness of Vermont s health care delivery and financing systems, said Guy Boyer, chairman of BCBSVT s Board of Directors. Don has played an instrumental role in helping the Plan grow and strengthen over the last decade, and we are confident that he will lead BCBSVT into a new era marked by increasingly close and collaborative relationships with its customers, providers and with that state of Vermont itself.
Mr. George has Bachelor s Degrees in both Business Administration and Political Science from the University of Vermont, as well as a Master s Degree in Business Administration and Management from St. Michael s College. He began his career in health care in 1986 at the then-Medical Center Hospital of Vermont (which later became Fletcher Allen Health Care) and joined BCBSVT in 1993.
As Vice President of the Plan s Managed Health Systems division, he was responsible for all aspects of relationships with Vermont s health care providers. He led the development of medical management and quality programs that were recognized with the highest levels of accreditation by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA), and which contributed to BCBSVT and TVHP being named among America s Top 50 Health Plans by U.S. News and World Report magazine. Mr. George also oversaw performance improvement programs at the Plan that were recognized by the state of Vermont with the Governor s Award for Performance Excellence.
As a locally based, single-state non-profit health benefits and financing company, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont is an important resource for Vermont and for Vermonters, said Mr. George, who also is chairman of the Board of Directors of the Vermont Information Technology Leaders and a member of the executive committee of the Vermont Blueprint for Health.
We have a tremendous opportunity to work with all stakeholders in health care providers, payers and policy makers alike to improve both the quality and affordability of health care and to assure that all Vermonters have access to health care coverage.
Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont is the state's oldest and largest private health insurer, providing coverage for about 170,000 Vermonters. It employs over 350 Vermonters at its headquarters in Berlin and branch office in Williston, and offers group and individual health plans to Vermonters. More information about Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont is available on the Internet at www.bcbsvt.com. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Vermont is an independent corporation operating under a license with the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, an association of independent Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans.