President & CEO

Paul Markovich is president and CEO of Blue Shield of California, a 4-million-member nonprofit health plan, with more than $17 billion in annual revenue, that serves the state’s commercial, individual and government markets. Markovich assumed the position of CEO in January 2013.

As president and CEO, Markovich leads Blue Shield’s mission to ensure Californians access to high-quality health care at an affordable price. In 2015, he led Blue Shield’s acquisition of Care1st Health Plan, marking the company’s entry into the Medi-Cal/Medicaid market.

A 20-year Blue Shield veteran, Markovich previously served as COO, responsible for Health Care Services, Network Management, e-Business, Marketing, Product Development, Customer Operations and Blue Shield’s three business units offering medical and specialty benefits coverage.

Prior to his position as COO, Markovich was senior vice president of the Large Group business unit and led the CalPERS business unit, boosting membership and revenue in both roles.

This is Markovich’s second stint with Blue Shield. Leading the company’s Product Development unit in the late 1990s, he introduced numerous products and services, including the first California HMO to allow self-referrals to specialists, as well as the Blue Shield website.

While away from Blue Shield, Markovich spent 2 1/2 years as an entrepreneur, co-founding a consumer driven health plan. He then joined Definity Health, another consumer-driven plan based in Minneapolis, before returning to Blue Shield.

Markovich started his professional career as a management consultant with Booz Allen & Hamilton in New York. He is a North Dakota native and a graduate of Colorado College, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in international political economy and played Division I hockey. He is also a Rhodes Scholar, with a master’s degree in philosophy, politics and economics from Oxford University, as well as a husband and father. He serves on the board of directors of America’s Health Insurance Plans and the California Association of Health Plans.