EAGAN, Minn., Jan. 22, 2026 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota (Blue Cross) today announced the appointment of Allysia Jenkins, DNP as Vice President of Health Solutions and Benjamin Pepin as Vice President of Affordability. Jenkins most recently served as Senior Director of Case Management at Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota, while Pepin joins the organization from Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Kansas City, where he held the title of Vice President of Enterprise Improvement and Business Evolution.

In her new role, Jenkins will lead case management, population health, utilization management and behavioral health product strategy.

“Allysia has demonstrated exceptional leadership in driving our Case Management and Population Health product and strategy initiatives,” said Dr. Mark Steffen, Chief Medical Officer at Blue Cross. “Her deep expertise across our health services portfolio paired with her strategic vision and collaborative leadership style position her to drive continued success in Health Solutions.”

As Vice President of Affordability, Pepin will shape and execute a comprehensive affordability strategy that drives sustainable cost improvements.

“Ben has been recognized for his expertise in health plan operations and data-driven value targeting, and he’s passionate about leveraging analytics to optimize healthcare delivery,” said Dr. Steffen. “His extensive experience driving enterprise transformation and affordability for major health plans will accelerate our ability to maximize value for our members.”

Allysia Jenkins, Vice President of Health Solutions 

Jenkins has more than 20 years of healthcare leadership experience in clinical strategy, operations, and fiscal management. She has a strong background in large-scale healthcare operations redesign, strategy development, stakeholder collaboration, and driving quality business solutions to deliver impactful health outcomes. 

Prior to joining Blue Cross in 2018, Jenkins spent six years as the Director of Care Management and later the Director of Clinical Strategy at Humana, five years as Director of Clinical Nursing at Park Nicollet and 11 years in various clinical roles at the University of Minnesota Medical Center.

Jenkins received her Doctor of Nursing Practice (DNP) degree in Healthcare Leadership and Innovation and her Bachelor of Science (BSN) in Nursing from the University of Minnesota. Jenkins also holds a Master of Arts in Nursing Education from St. Catherine University.

Ben Pepin, Vice President of Affordability

Pepin has extensive experience in enterprise transformation and operational excellence for major health plans.

At Blue Cross Blue Shield of Kansas City, he provided strategic guidance to C-suite leadership and oversaw enterprise project governance. Previously, Pepin spent more than 15 years at Accenture leading payer-focused initiatives, including claims accuracy programs, large-scale system migrations, vendor strategy, and cost containment efforts that delivered hundreds of millions in savings.

Pepin holds a BA in Business Management and MIS from Luther College.

Blue Cross® and Blue Shield® of Kansas City is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

About Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota

For more than 90 years, Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota (Bluecrossmn.com) has supported our members by ensuring access to high quality care at an affordable price. Our 3 million members can be found in every Minnesota county, all 50 states and on four continents. Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association.

FOR MORE INFORMATION:                                                

Bryce Butzer | 651.662.9183

Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota

[email protected]

Image: https://www.globenewswire.com/newsroom/ti?nf=OTYzMDc0MiM3Mzc1Nzc5IzIyNjA3OTY=

Image: https://ml.globenewswire.com/media/ZTJhMjBiMTAtZTMwYy00N2FmLTgzOWEtNDFjMDcyOWZlNDc4LTEyNzIzNDYtMjAyNi0wMS0yMi1lbg==/tiny/BCBSM-Inc-dba-Blue-Cross-and-B.png Image: Primary Logo

Source: Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Minnesota