A trusted health partner. For over 85 years.

The first group hospitalization plan, known as Group Hospital Services, began operating in Kansas City and was later named Blue Cross of Kansas City. Blue Cross of Kansas City was incorporated with initial funding from the Jackson County Medical Society and local hospitals. Starting with just seven network hospitals, two employees and $3,025 in working capital provided by local physicians, hospitals and individuals, Blue Cross of Kansas City grew to 10 network hospitals and eight employees in just one year.
Our first group? Wolferman’s Bakery. Our first group employee? Betty Jackson, Office Manager and Controller at Wolferman’s.

Kansas City Blue Shield was formed to provide members with a prepayment plan for physician services, holding contracts with more than 300 companies and serving more than 14,000 members within a year of inception.

Non-group enrollment was introduced, offering memberships without age limit to all who do not have group enrollment available. Kansas City was the first Plan in Jackson county to offer this type of enrollment without age limit, thus making membership available to everyone in the community.

With the growing need to provide healthcare to senior citizens, we introduced a Medicare program that provided seniors with health insurance—and still does today.

The Kansas City Blue Cross and Blue Shield plans merged to become one entity, creating Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City (Blue KC). Since then, our company has continued to add members from the greater Kansas City area.

We purchased our headquarters building at 2301 Main Street to help drive down administrative costs and demonstrate our long-standing commitment to Kansas City. This same year, Blue KC celebrated its 65th anniversary and grew our revenues to more than $1 billion and saw the strongest overall membership growth in our history.

Blue KC announces Spira Care, an innovative primary care and insurance offering. With a focus on simplifying what can sometimes be a complex, stressful, and impersonal healthcare process, Spira Care was molded straight from the feedback of our customers. The model focuses on innovation that combines cost-effective care and exceptional coverage, all with a personal touch. Delivering what we like to call advanced primary care to more than 45,000 members and counting.

We found our new home at 1400 Baltimore Avenue, bringing 800 Blue KC employees together in the heart of downtown. Our modern headquarters features state-of-the-art technology, collaborative workspaces and amenities designed to help us better serve our members—all while keeping us connected to the community we’ve served since 1938.

Today, we’re leading the way in making healthcare work better for Kansas City. Our health plans with access to Spira Care centers are transforming how members experience primary care, while our advanced population health programs help entire communities stay healthier. From customized solutions for businesses to flexible plans for individuals, we’re constantly developing new ways to deliver more affordable, accessible care. It’s all part of our commitment to being your trusted health advocate for generations to come.