Scott Nehs

Senior Vice President, General Counsel and Corporate Secretary

Scott Nehs is senior vice president of general counsel and corporate secretary for the Blue Cross Blue Shield Association (BCBSA), a national federation of independent, community-based and locally operated Blue Cross and Blue Shield (BCBS) companies. Today, one in three Americans is covered by the Blue System. 

Having practiced law for more than 27 years, Nehs advises BCBSA and BCBS Plan senior leadership on a range of strategic, reputational and operational issues to protect and enhance the brand. During his tenure, he has hired or promoted over half of the 36 members of the division, making significant inroads in adding to the diversity and depth of the legal team. He is also leading defense of the nationwide antitrust class action litigation which began in 2012 and is still pending against BCBSA and each BCBS Plan. In addition to Nehs’ leadership of his team’s legal efforts, he has overall accountability for BCBSA’s governance matters and privacy initiatives, as well as its audit, compliance and national anti-fraud functions. 

Prior to his current role, he served as BCBSA’s deputy general counsel and assistant corporate secretary. Before joining BCBSA, Nehs served at PepsiCo where he was senior vice president of legal and government affairs for PepsiAmericas, Inc., a $5 billion NYSE corporation and the world’s second largest bottler of Pepsi-branded products. He was also a member of the company’s worldwide leadership team and held the offices of chief compliance officer and chief privacy officer. He began his career at Wildman, Harrold, Allen & Dixon, a large firm based in Chicago where he worked on a wide variety of litigation matters, trying civil and criminal cases in the federal and state courts for his clients.  

Nehs frequently shares his expertise as a speaker at legal seminars and other forums. He earned a bachelor’s degree in political science and sociology from Northwestern University and his law degree from the University of Wisconsin Law School. 

The Blue Cross Blue Shield Association is an association of 35 independent, locally operated Blue Cross and/or Blue Shield companies.