Anthem Inc., which already operates Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association plans in Georgia and 13 other states, will add thousands of employees and tens of thousands of subscribers in Tennessee with its purchase of Cigna Healthcare.
But Anthem won’t be able to market itself in Tennessee or Alabama with the Blue Cross brand. That brand belongs to independent Blue Cross plans in those states, including the Chattanooga-based BlueCross and BlueShield – the biggest health insurer in the Volunteer State.
Cigna is the second biggest commercial health insurer in Tennessee, behind only BlueCross.
Cigna acquired Healthsource in Chattanooga from the predecessor of Unum Corp., in 1995 for $231 million and now employs more than 1,300 employees at claims processing offices in downtown Chattanooga and in East Brainerd. In 2011, Cigna paid $3.8 billion to buy the Franklin, Tenn.,-based HealthSpring, which employs more than 2,500 Middle Tennessee workers and offers Medicare Advantage plans 14 states and Washington D.C., plus a nationwide prescription drug plan.
The Cameron Hill headquarters of BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee in downtown Chattanooga.Joseph Swedish, the Anthem CEO who will continue to head the combined company, said the two companies together will be stronger and more profitable and have “an even brighter future.” But company officials project Anthem should realize $2 billion of cost savings through synergies with Cigna that will involve some cuts in offices and personnel.