Bruce G. Bodaken Biography

A native of Iowa, Mr. Bodaken doesn’t fit the typical profile of a health plan CEO.  He earned a masters degree and taught philosophy at the college level before embarking on a career in health care.

During Mr. Bodaken’s six-year tenure as CEO, Blue Shield has been one of the fastest growing health plans in California. Membership has more than doubled and company revenues have risen from $3 billion to $8 billion. In the past several years, the company won vigorous competitions for two large government contracts, covering nearly 400,000 state employees in CalPERS and half a million members of U.S. military families enrolled in the TRICARE program.

Passionate about his company’s not-for-profit mission, Mr. Bodaken is the first health plan CEO to offer a specific proposal to cover all Californians. His provocative plan for universal coverage based on universal responsibility has earned praise from major news organizations throughout the country. During his tenure, he also transformed the Blue Shield of California Foundation into one of the state’s largest healthcare grant makers, with nearly $30 million in donations in 2005.  Most of the foundation’s grants support programs to help the uninsured, combat domestic violence, and expand the use of effective healthcare technology.

In addition to his work at Blue Shield, Mr. Bodaken serves on numerous professional and civic boards. He is a member of the board of directors of the California Business Roundtable, America’s Health Insurance Plans, WageWorks, the University of California, Berkeley’s Health Services Management Program, and Youth Tennis Advantage (a nonprofit that serves inner-city youth).  He is co-author (with Robert Fritz) of The Managerial Moment of Truth, published by Simon & Schuster (Free Press) in 2006.

Mr. Bodaken joined Blue Shield in 1994 as president and chief operating officer.

Previously, he served as senior vice president and associate chief operating officer of FHP International Corporation in Southern California. He lives in the San Francisco Bay Area.

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