SC BlueCross Names Dr. Shawn Stinson Chief Medical Officer
January 27, 2015
COLUMBIA, SC – BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina has appointed Shawn Stinson, M.D., vice president of clinical innovation and chief medical officer. He will lead BlueCross’ collaboration with the South Carolina medical community to transform health care to improve the individual’s care experience, improve population health and reduce costs.
Reporting to him are major units that support the development of clinical care models, new reimbursement strategies that pay for better health outcomes, and pharmacy management in an era of rapidly increasing drug development and costs.
“Dr. Stinson has an excellent combination of clinical, quality, data analytics and management skills that will continue to guide us as we move into accountable care and continue expansion of value-based reimbursement,” said BlueCross President Jim Deyling. “He will be integral to our part in supporting the medical community’s transformation.”
Board certified in internal medicine, Stinson has been in South Carolina for nearly two decades. He has been affiliated with the 1,138-bed Palmetto Health system based in Columbia and the University of South Carolina’s School of Medicine. Most recently, he served as chief quality and patient safety officer for Palmetto Health and clinical associate professor of medicine at USC.
While at Palmetto Health, he coordinated the development of a systemwide quality improvement program, significantly reducing harm and mortality. In collaboration with the South Carolina Hospital Association, other health care systems in the state and the Joint Commission Center for Transforming Healthcare, he championed the transformation of Palmetto Health into a “highly reliable organization.” This is an effort by high-risk industries to establish leadership and a culture for systematic changes to avoid errors and improve care delivery. He also partnered with physicians and other leaders to help launch the Palmetto Health Quality Collaborative. This physician-led, patient-centered, interdependent medical entity focuses on best practices in clinical outcomes, evidence-informed care and cost reduction.
Previously, Stinson was at Johns Hopkins University and Hospital, Baltimore, where he completed an internship and residency and served on the faculty. He received his medical education at Duke University and his undergraduate education at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro.
A fellow in the American College of Physicians, Stinson serves on the advisory council of Camp Kemo Programs, a Palmetto Health program supporting children with cancer and other blood disorders. He also serves on the the quality advisory committee of the South Carolina Hospital Association.
He replaces Dr. Laura Long, who retired in December.
Headquartered in Columbia, S.C., and operating in South Carolina for more than 65 years, BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association. The only South Carolina-owned and operated health insurance carrier, BlueCross BlueShield of South Carolina comprises more than 20 companies involved in health insurance services, U.S. DoD health program and Medicare contracts, other insurance and employee benefits services, and a philanthropic foundation that funds programs to improve health care and access to health care for South Carolinians.
