Winn-Dixie Stores, Inc. has teamed with Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Florida (BCBSF) to offer customers health bards in all 353 of the grocery chain’s Florida Winn-Dixie and Save-Rite locations. The program offers two options: the $59 Gift of Health Care card and $19 FamilyBlue discount card.

Providing an easy way to access reasonably priced health insurance, the $59 Gift of Health Care card is applied to the plan chosen by the customer during the activation call. The $19 FamilyBlue discount card, meanwhile, which provides an entire family with discounts on dental, pharmacy and vision care for three months, can pay for itself in just one visit to a health care provider, according to Jacksonville, Fla.-based Winn-Dixie.

“The current economic downturn has left many people without access to health care benefits for themselves and their families,” noted the grocer’s group VP of marketing, Mary Kellmanson. “This program offers an affordable solution to that critical issue.”

The cards are available on a permanent freestanding display unit in pharmacy areas, or in the cold-and-flu aisle in stores without pharmacies. After purchasing a card, a shopper can then activate it by calling a BCBSF 1-800 number on the back of the card, in addition to receiving their personalized member ID card to take on doctor visits.

“Our goal is simple -- to provide Floridians with easy access to the health care system,” observed Craig Thomas, VP and chief marketing officer of Jacksonville-based BCBSF, which is an independent licensee of the Blue Cross and Blue Shield Association, a group of independent Blue Cross and Blue Shield companies. “This is a completely unique concept for the health care industry that allows us to reach a broader audience of uninsured and underinsured who would normally go to their local store to purchase pre-paid and gift cards. Winn-Dixie’s role as the first Florida grocer to carry these cards is a clearly demonstrates their commitment to the health and wellbeing of the communities they serve.”

Winn-Dixie operates 515 grocery stores, including over 400 in-store pharmacies, in Florida, Alabama, Louisiana, Georgia and Mississippi.