208.387.6817
866.482.2252
Board of Directors
Ray Flachbart, Chairman
Ray Flachbart became President and CEO of Blue Cross of Idaho on January 1, 2001. Under his leadership, Blue Cross of Idaho has increased its membership nearly 100 percent to nearly 600,000 members. From 2003 through 2005, Blue Cross of Idaho generated greater member growth on a percentage basis than any other Blue Plan in the United States.
The nation’s leading independent financial rating service, TheStreet.com, awarded Blue Cross of Idaho an A+ rating in March 2010. In terms of financial strength, this rating places Blue Cross of Idaho in the top 4 percent of health insurance companies nationwide. It is the fifth consecutive year Blue Cross of Idaho has received a rating of “excellent financial strength”.
Under Ray’s direction, Blue Cross of Idaho has developed Quality, Disease Management, and Wellness programs. Additionally, the Plan is in its fifth year of offering a Hospital Quality Incentive Program, which rewards hospitals for improving patient safety and health outcomes.
Prior to joining Blue Cross of Idaho, Ray was the Senior Vice President and General Manager of AmeriHealth of Texas, Inc., a subsidiary of Independence Blue Cross. Ray led the start-up of AmeriHealth of Texas, which grew from the 17th largest to that state’s sixth largest health plan in two years.
Ray also worked for Prudential Healthcare for 11 years in Connecticut, New Jersey and Texas. In Houston, Texas, he led Prudential’s health plan to increases in membership, profits, and customer satisfaction for three consecutive years. Previously, Ray was a health care consultant with InterQual and Amherst Associates, working with hospitals and multi-hospital systems on strategic planning and financial engagements.
Ray is Chairman of the Board of the Blue Cross of Idaho Foundation for Health, and he serves on the Board of Directors for the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, the Boise State University Foundation, the Idaho Business Coalition for Education Excellence, and the Danny Thompson Memorial Leukemia Foundation.
Ray received his BA from Cleveland State University and his MA and MBA (with a concentration in finance) from the University of Chicago.
Zelda Geyer-Sylvia, Vice Chairman
Zelda Geyer-Sylvia is Executive Vice President and Chief Operating Officer. She joined Blue Cross of Idaho in December 2006 and brings with her exceptional credentials and extensive professional experience in her more than 20 years in the health insurance industry. From 1998 until joining Blue Cross of Idaho, Zelda was the chief executive officer at M-Care, a 200,000 member not-for-profit managed care company owned by the University of Michigan, in Ann Arbor. Previous experience includes executive positions with Kaiser Permanente in New York and Community Health Plan located in New York, Massachusetts and Vermont.
Zelda received her masters in public health from Yale University and a bachelor of arts from Middlebury College in Vermont. She was recently honored as one of the “Most Influential Women in Business in 2006” by the Ann Arbor Business Review. Zelda has also held various prestigious board memberships, including the Michigan Association of Health Plans.
Dr. Bruce Croffy
Secretary & Treasurer
Dr. Bruce Croffy completed his MS and PhD in Biochemistry at Boston College before attending Tufts University School of Medicine. After receiving his MD, he completed his internship, medical residency and gastroenterology fellowship at Tufts-New England Medical Center in Boston. He then practiced internal medicine and gastroenterology for 15 years in Salem, Mass., before transitioning to the role of chief medical officer for HCC Life, a stop-loss health insurance underwriter. There he served for eight years developing programs unique to the reinsurance industry.
In 2007 he joined OptumHealth as national medical director for the nurseline and treatment decision support services programs, also managing the dedicated Care Management Teams for major client accounts. In 2009 he joined Blue Cross of Idaho as Medical Director for Government Programs and Quality before accepting the position as Senior Medical Director in October of 2009. In March of 2010 he accepted the position of Chief Medical Officer at Blue Cross of Idaho.