At Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Oklahoma, our priority remains what matters most: standing with our members and communities — especially during the unprecedented global pandemic.

Six community partners received grant money from BCBSOK’s $1 million COVID-19 grant fund, established to bolster Oklahomans’ access to care and support the state’s health care professionals and nonprofits during the pandemic. The Community Service Council of Tulsa, Heartline OKC, the Tulsa Area United Way, the United Way of Central Oklahoma, MyHealth Access Network and the Southern Plains Tribal Health Board all received grants.

BCBSOK employees also went directly into communities across the state to continue their support during the pandemic. 

BCBSOK collaborated with community partners — the YMCA, the Latino Community Development Agency and the Tulsa Dream Center — to set up 10 drive-through mask distribution sites. Additional supplies of masks were distributed through Oklahoma Primary Care Association partners and Tribal health systems and Tribal nation partners. 

Every year, BCBSOK supports communities throughout the state with grants and sponsorships. While COVID-19 altered many plans, BCBSOK remained committed to annual giving and employees continued to donate their time and money to causes they care about.

In 2020, BCBSOK awarded more than $500,000 in local grants to 15 nonprofit organizations as part of the larger Healthy Kids, Healthy Families® initiative. The organizations all work with children and their families on nutrition, physical activity, preventing and managing disease, and supporting safe environments.

Our initiatives to improve care access and affordability contribute directly to our mission to do everything in our power to stand with our members and communities in sickness and in health.

Many Oklahomans who live in small or rural towns know it can be difficult to find a local care provider. It is challenging for physicians to start a medical practice in those small towns without financial help. To combat this, BCBSOK worked with the Choctaw Nation of Oklahoma and the Physician Manpower Training Commission (PMTC) to incentivize physicians to set up shop in rural Oklahoma.

BCBSOK donated $500,000 to the PMTC Physician Loan Repayment Program, which pays off loans of physicians who agree to practice in underserved areas of Oklahoma.

The OSU clinic opened satellite locations throughout Oklahoma to reach more people who need help. Leaders are also planning a long-term study to see if patients are willing to use virtual tools and remain engaged in the treatment. The study’s results may help develop better ways to reach people statewide.

“That’s really what’s at the heart of this grant," said Dr. Kelly Dunn, a physician at OSU Addiction Medicine Specialty Clinic. "This definitely feels like the right place and the right time when everything comes together to really make an impact on Oklahoma.” 

BCBSOK has the largest and most robust network in the state, providing access to care in all of Oklahoma’s 77 counties. Maintaining access to care across rural and urban areas makes a difference in our member’s lives, ensuring they have the right care when they need it most.

Employee groups 
Our employee-led business resource groups (BRGs) are there to support, empower and connect employees to the business, community, and one another.  

 Oklahoma has 38 federally recognized tribes, and nearly 29% of Native Americans nationwide are uninsured. Lucinda Myers is an enrolled citizen of the Muscogee Creek Nation in Oklahoma and a tribal relations specialist with BCBSOK who has dedicated her life to helping underserved indigenous people. She chairs BCBSOK’s Native Americans in Progress (NAIP) BRG, through which she and other BRG members can share cultural knowledge with the business.  

Members of another BRG at BCBSOK, African Americans in Motion (AAIM), were some of the more than 80 employees who marched in parades in Tulsa and Oklahoma City in January honoring the life and legacy of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.

NAIP and AAIM are two of six active BRGs in Oklahoma: 

    - African Americans in Motion 
    - Engaging Multigenerational Energy to Recognize Growth Enterprisewide 
    - Latinos for Advancement  
    - NAIP 
    - Pride Alliance  
    - Women Improving the Strength of the Enterprise