Health insurer Independence Blue Cross announced it will trim between 100 and 125 jobs this June in a move it says is tied to the current economy.

IBC spokeswoman Liz Williams told IFAwebnews.com that the Philadelphia-based insurer plans to eliminate the positions “as we continue to look for ways to lower our overall cost of doing business.” She said IBC has not decided what divisions will be impacted by the move.

“The job cuts are designed to better align administrative expenses with the company’s desire to provide more affordable health care choices for customers,” she said.

With 8,880 associates, Williams added that the company is “not looking at a mass layoff.”

She said no business, including one of the state’s two largest health care insurers, is immune from today’s economy and IBC is taking steps to “ensure our company will remain stable and continue to serve our customers with innovation and excellence.”

Williams did not connect the layoffs to a failed merger with Pittsburgh-based Highmark Inc., but rather “a response to the challenging economy.”

In February, the two health insurers ended plans to consolidate operations in a merger that would have created the fourth largest health insurer in the nation and the largest in Pennsylvania.  Highmark serves western and central portions of the state, while IBC serves the southeastern part of Pennsylvania. IBC serves a total of 3.4 million customers.

IBC has been examining administrative expenses, she said, to reduce costs and meet customer’s needs. Specifically, Williams said, the insurer is looking at both salary and non-salary administrative cost reductions.

“Because such a large share of our expenses are associates’ salaries, this year we have already frozen current job openings and begun analyzing closely any new openings to determine whether to fill them,” Williams said. “We have also begun analyzing each business area, including the executive leadership, to find ways to improve our productivity, efficiency, and responsiveness through enhanced technology, improved workflow, and flattening our management structure to fewer layers.”

For those who will be losing their jobs in two months, Williams said IBC will “make a strong effort” to assist them, ranging from opportunities for other jobs with the insurer to receiving career counseling and severance packages for others.