History of BlueCross BlueShield Brands

Born out of necessity in the Great Depression, the Blue Cross concept was created in 1929 by a pioneering businessman, Justin Ford Kimball. He offered a way for 1,300 school teachers in Dallas to finance 21 days of hospital care by making small monthly payments to the Baylor University Hospital.

Around the same time, the Blue Shield concept was growing out of the lumber and mining camps of the Pacific Northwest . Serious injuries and chronic illness were common among workers in these hazardous jobs. Employers who wanted to provide medical care for their workers made arrangements with physicians who were paid a monthly fee for their services.

These pioneer programs provided the basis for what would become the “modern” Blue Shield Plans. You can learn more through the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association.

In 1934 Empire's earliest predecessor, Associated Hospital Service (AHS), was founded. In 1985, the merger of Blue Cross of Northeastern New York, Inc. and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Greater New York created Empire BlueCross BlueShield.

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