WASHINGTON BLUE CROSS REJECTS MERGER

                         Roanoke Times
                 Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.

DATE: FRIDAY, April 2, 1993                   TAG: 9304020324
SECTION: VIRGINIA                    PAGE: B3   EDITION: METRO 
SOURCE: Associated Press
DATELINE: RICHMOND                                LENGTH: Short
WASHINGTON BLUE CROSS REJECTS MERGER
The Blue Cross and Blue Shield for the Washington area has rejected a merger offer from the Virginia plan, officials said Thursday.
The District of Columbia Blue Cross instead is pursuing a cash infusion from a group of Blue Cross organizations, which will likely will include the Richmond-based Virginia plan.
"Throughout the discussions, we have encouraged the D.C. Blue to pursue other offers," said Jim Goss, spokesman for the Virginia plan. "Our most recent proposal did not meet the requirements of the D.C. Blue board."
The Virginia plan has made several offers since October, but none pleased its D.C. counterpart, Goss said.
"Our commitment to our policyholders to keep the Virginia plan financially solid meant that we could not enhance the offer," he said.
Specific terms of the Virginia offer were not disclosed.
The consortium proposal, which developed in February, could involve $45 million or more in cash in exchange for equity in the Blue Cross and Blue Shield of the National Capital Area, said Ray Freson, a spokesman for the Washington-based health insurance plan.

by Bhavesh Jinadra by CNB