BCBST earns spot on Information Week's list of top technology innovators

BlueCross BlueShield of Tennessee announced Friday that the organization has made this year's Information Week 500, which is an annual listing of the nation's most innovative users of business technology.

This was BlueCross' first inclusion on the list. 

In 2011, after a hard drive was stolen in 2009, BlueCross made efforts to encrypt all at-rest data within its enterprise. The effort, which cost $6 million, included more than 885 terabytes of data and is thought to be the first of its kind by any health insurer.

“We are honored to be included in the 2012 InformationWeek 500,” Nick Coussoule, senior vice president and chief information officer for BlueCross, said in a prepared statement. “This recognition underscores our commitment to protecting our members’ data, which is a vital responsibility and an ongoing journey. The encryption project had a very aggressive timeline and took an outstanding effort by a great team to accomplish.”

“The InformationWeek 500 has recognized the most innovative users of business technology for 24 years, and this year’s innovations were particularly impressive,” said InformationWeek Editor-in-Chief Rob Preston in a prepared statement.