President of Kaiser Hired by Rival Blue Shield

Wayne R. Moon, president and chief operating officer of Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, on Thursday was named president and chief executive of rival Blue Shield of California.

It is telling that San Francisco-based Blue Shield, one of California’s largest fee-for-service insurers, tapped the giant health maintenance organization for a new leader. Like other traditional carriers, Blue Shield has shifted focus toward managed care, the likely model for federal health reforms.

“The idea would be for the pace to pick up,” Moon, 53, said in a telephone interview Thursday.

In June, nonprofit Blue Shield announced plans to merge with Unihealth America, the nonprofit parent of hospitals and of two large HMO networks, Pacificare Health Systems and CareAmerica Health Plans. The $6.5-billion combined firm will serve 4.5 million Californians, nearly as many as Kaiser.

Moon said he will work with his counterparts at Unihealth to “develop synergies” between the two units.

Moon succeeds Peter F. Scott, Blue Shield’s interim CEO for the last year.