CEO: If We Want to Make Health Insurance More Affordable, We Must Change How Health Care is Paid For

05.16.2025 | 2 min read

As the President and CEO of Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, I have the privilege of leading a nonprofit mutual health insurance organization that serves over five million members nationwide. I take to heart the responsibility of leading BCBSM into its next chapter. The foundation of who I am goes back to my family’s 130-year-old dairy farm in Northern Michigan. There, I learned the value of hard work, showing up with purpose, and caring for others. Those lessons continue to guide me today. I have held several senior leadership roles in my nearly 20 years working at this company, most recently as Executive Vice President, Chief Operating Officer and President of the Emerging Markets Division. It has given me a grounding in what our organization is today and what it needs to be in the future. Health care is at a turning point, with immense opportunities and significant challenges. My vision for BCBSM is centered on the people we serve. We serve them best by continuing to transform, innovate and deliver value. We represent them by staying grounded in our commitment to accessible, affordable care every day.

For decades, most doctors and hospitals have been paid based on how much they do: more tests, more procedures, more visits, more money. This pay-for-everything system is called fee-for-service, and it rewards volume, not value. That has led to health care costs that keep climbing — without necessarily improving outcomes for patients.

We believe there’s a better way — one that prioritizes health outcomes, patient experience and more affordable health care. It’s called value-based care.

At Blue Cross Blue Shield of Michigan, we’ve been leading the way to transform how health care is paid for. We are moving away from the fee-for-service model. Our focus of payment is on rewarding quality, coordinated care that delivers real, sustainable health outcomes for our members.

Through innovative payment models and partnerships with leading physicians and health systems, we’re already driving change. Value-based care reduces unnecessary hospitalizations, improves chronic disease management and avoids duplicative testing. In essence, it financially rewards providers for what patients truly want — the best possible outcome that puts them on the path toward better health.

Transformation of this magnitude requires a united effort across the entire health care system. For value-based care to truly move the needle on affordability, hospitals and specialists must embrace this model with the same urgency and commitment we’ve seen in primary care and some specialty settings. We need a collective commitment to value-based care across the health care system.

I invite you to learn more about what Blue Cross is doing to address affordability through advancing value-based care at mibluedaily.com/affordability.

Together, we can redefine how care is paid for — ensuring that quality care is accessible and affordable for every Michiganian.

Photo credit: Getty Images

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CEO: If We Want to Make Health Insurance More Affordable, We Must Change How Health Care is Paid For

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