blue-cross-blue-shield

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Missouri serves more than 1.1 million medical
members and is the oldest and largest health benefits company in Missouri.
Blue Cross Blue Shield of Missouri is an operating subsidiary of WellPoint
Health Networks Inc., the nation’s second largest publicly traded health care
company serving the health care needs of more than 15.3 million medical
members and approximately 46 million specialty members nationally.
WellPoint offers a broad spectrum of quality network-based health products
including open access PPO, POS and hybrid products, HMO and specialty
products. Specialty products include pharmacy benefit management, dental,
utilization management, vision, mental health, life and disability insurance,
long term care insurance, flexible spending accounts, COBRA administration,
and Medicare supplements. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Missouri can be found
on the web at www.bcbsmo.com. Blue Cross Blue Shield of Missouri is
independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

Blue Cross Blue Shield of Missouri is the name RightCHOICE Managed Care
Inc. (RIT) uses to do business in most of Missouri. RIT and certain affiliates
administer non-HMO benefits underwritten by Healthy Alliance Life Insurance
Company (HALIC) and HMO benefits underwritten by HMO Missouri, Inc.
HMO Missouri, Inc. does business as BlueCHOICE. RightCHOICE and certain
affiliates only provide administrative services for self-funded plans and do
not underwrite benefits. RightCHOICE, HMO Missouri, Inc. and HALIC are
independent licensees of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

View Blue Cross Blue Shield of Missouri's various Health Insurance Plans for
individual and family.

Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, is a trade association for the
independent, locally operated Blue Cross and Blue Shield Plans. We are the
proven consumer health advocates, always with the public's best interests at
heart. When families are seeking quality health insurance, they think of our
member Blue Plans.

The 38 local member companies of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield
Association have provided millions of families like yours with top-quality,
affordable health insurance for more than 70 years. For the one in three
Americans who carry Blue Cross and Blue Shield cards, the Blue Plans
symbolize health security. Their member Plans provide the kind of health
care coverage you and your loved ones will want and need in the 21st
century: high quality, customer-focused, innovative, affordable.

As they move forward in the new millennium, there are many exciting medical
breakthroughs likely just around the corner. With those discoveries comes
change. The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association and its member Plans
will be there every step of the way for American families, like always. Blue
Cross and Blue Shield companies are the most-recognized group of health
insurance providers in the world.

For nearly 75 years, Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies have been
recognized as one of the most trusted sources for healthcare coverage and
as an advocate for improving healthcare quality.

Healthcare is the single largest segment of the economy in the United
States. In 2003, we spent nearly $1.7 trillion on healthcare -- that’s more
than we spend on food, housing or national defense. By 2012, healthcare
costs are expected to almost double to nearly $3.1 trillion. In an effort to help
protect the vital resources of our healthcare system, the 38 independent
Blue Plans launched a campaign to help keep quality healthcare affordable.

Keeping healthcare affordable and improving quality will require all of us to
be more knowledgeable about healthcare and to be more vigilant in making
cost-effective choices about our healthcare. The BCBS Healthcare Cost
Campaign consists of four integrated elements -- BlueWorks, WalkingWorks,
Your Choices Count and a comprehensive research agenda -- that will
monitor the ongoing impact of rising healthcare costs and offer local
solutions and insight on how to better manage our healthcare dollars and to
improve the quality of care we receive.

The Blue System is also working together to combat healthcare fraud. The
National Healthcare Anti-Fraud Association estimates fraud costs Americans
over $50 billion annually. Learn more about the anti-fraud efforts that Blue
Cross and Blue Shield companies are making as part of our goal to keep
healthcare affordable.

The Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association is pleased
to present the fourth annual Medical Cost Reference
Guide: Facts and Trends to Support Knowledge-Driven
Solutions. The guide provides information on trends in
the healthcare industry from nationally recognized data
sources. To address these trends, the Blue Cross and
Blue Shield companies offer a vision for the
improvement of healthcare delivery-our BluePrint for the
Future. The goal is to encourage knowledge-driven
approaches that can lead to better, more affordable
care for consumers.