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As president and chief executive officer of Health Care Service Corporation (HCSC), Raymond F. McCaskey oversees the operations of the fourth largest health insurance company in United States. HCSC is perhaps best known for its four main divisions: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Mexico, and Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Oklahoma. HCSC subsidiaries include Fort Dearborn Life Insurance Company in Chicago, Colorado Bankers Life Insurance Company and Dental Network of America.
Mr. McCaskey joined Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois in 1976 as an associate actuary, and rose through the ranks to vice president, chief financial officer and president. He was named chief executive officer of Health Care Service Corporation in 1993, just as the national health care reform debate was intensifying. Mr. McCaskey became and continues to bean outspoken advocate of genuine reforms to make health insurance more affordable and accessible for all Americans. He is a past chairman of the board of the national Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, which is the federation of 38 independent Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans.
Greater health care security for Blue Cross and Blue Shield members in the communities served by HCSC has been achieved through Mr. McCaskey’s successful efforts to make Health Care Service Corporation one of the financially strongest health insurers in the nation.
Mr. McCaskey orchestrated the successful merger of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Illinois with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Texas, and the acquisition of Blue Cross and Blue Shield of New Mexico and the 2005 merger with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Oklahoma. The four Plans and their 14,000 employees serve approximately 11 million members.
To accommodate growth, Health Care Service Corporation, under Mr. McCaskey’s direction, constructed a unique headquarters building at 300 East Randolph in downtown Chicago. The 30-story building, which opened in 1997, is designed to be an attractive addition to the city’s skyline, but is also functionally designed to expand to 54 stories to meet business demands. The large percentage of minority and women-owned companies used as subcontractors on the construction project earned HCSC the 1997 Private Owner Award from the Federation of Women Contractors. Mr. McCaskey’s commitment to providing safe workplaces for all employees including those involved in the construction of the new building resulted in Health Care Service Corporation being named recipient of the 1997 Workplace Safety Award from the Michael Bruton Workplace Safety Foundation.
A strong commitment to people, quality and service is Mr. McCaskey’s hallmark, as evidenced by the many community projects and programs nurtured by HCSC through its Blue Cross Plans.
Under Mr. McCaskey’s leadership, Health Care Service Corporation has been a strong advocate of health care reform on the national and state levels. He served on Illinois Governor Jim Edgar’s Health Care Reform Task Force as one of two key committee chairmen. In 2002, he was presented with Chicago United’s first annual Changing How Chicago Works Award for his leadership in developing and promoting workforce diversity at HCSC. Currently, he is Chairman of Chicago United, a business group that has led the fight to improve race relations in the city. In 2003, he received the Jane Addams Award for Community Service presented by the Jane Addams Hull House Association.
Mr. McCaskey is a member of the Board of Trustees and past Chairman of the Lincoln Foundation for Performance Excellence, which promotes high levels of performance among Illinois businesses, schools and community organizations. Mr. McCaskey is a member of the Illinois Business Roundtable, the Commercial Club of Chicago and the Economic Club of Chicago. He is co-chair of WorkforceChicago2.0 and co-chair of CEO’s Against Cancer. In 1999 and 2000, he chaired the annual Chicago Area U.S. Savings Bond Campaign.
In addition, he is a member of the Leadership Council of the Epilepsy Foundation of Greater Chicago and he serves on the board of directors of Life Directions. Mr. McCaskey also is a member of the board of directors of Chicago Shakespeare Theater in Chicago and he is a member of the Board of Regents of Wartburg College in Waverly, Iowa.
He holds a bachelor’s degree from Wartburg College and a master’s degree from DePaul University, both in mathematics. Mr. McCaskey is a member of the American Academy of Actuaries and a Fellow of the Society of Actuaries.
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