Tips for navigating plan options during the COVID-19

By Rick Beavin, Desert Pacific Medicare President at Humana

The annual Medicare Advantage and Medicare Prescription Drug Plan enrollment period is approaching. From October 15 to December 7, millions of people eligible for Medicare can sign up, switch or leave a health care plan to fit their coverage needs for 2022. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Medicare information and resources are available to help you choose the plan that’s right for you while staying safe. Websites, online educational events and one-on-one meetings with sales agents are all great ways to learn about your Medicare plan options. At the same time, it’s important to access Medicare resources online while protecting your personal information and avoiding fake offers and other scams.

Here are some tips for how to prepare for the Medicare annual enrollment period:

1. Use an online tool

Go to the Medicare Plan Finder on Medicare.gov to compare plans, benefits and get an estimated cost for each plan based on an average member. If you are interested in Medicare Part D, which helps cover the cost of prescription medications, you can also enter the names of prescription medications you take to ensure those medications are covered by the plan you are considering.

On Medicare.gov, you can also learn about and enroll in Medicare Advantage plans, sometimes called Part C or MA Plans, and visit an insurance company’s website to understand more about what they offer. Insurance companies that offer Medicare Advantage plans can provide detailed information about their plans and services, plus prescription pricing information and other benefits. You can also check whether your primary care physician or other providers are in-network with the Medicare Advantage plan.

2. Connect with experts

Many insurance companies are offering online workshops to review 2022 Medicare Advantage plan options. Also, check to see if you can schedule a one-on-one meeting with an insurance company sales agent in-person or by phone or video chat. Before you attend an education event or meeting, it’s a good idea to prepare a list of questions so that you can ensure you get the information you need. Does the plan include vision, hearing and dental coverage? Will telehealth services be covered? Is transportation to your medical appointments included?

3. Protect yourself against Medicare scams

The federal Medicare agency has warned that scammers may try to use the pandemic to steal Medicare beneficiaries’ Medicare numbers, banking information or other personal data. Scammers may try to reach out to you by phone, email, text message, social media or by visiting your home. Only give your Medicare number to your doctor, pharmacist, hospital, health insurer or other trusted health care provider. Do not click links in text messages and emails from unknown sources, and hang up on unsolicited phone calls.

If you are not comfortable accessing plan information online, you will have the option to meet in-person with an agent this year. Or Medicare.gov has an option for setting up a phone call. To learn more, go to Medicare.gov or call 1-800-MEDICARE (800-633-4227).

 

“with regional data showing that the surge is now receding, and with the Bay Area one of the most vaccinated regions in the country, the health officers agree it is time to plan for a transition.”

Total population includes residents under age 12 who are not yet eligible for vaccinations.

As decisions to vaccinate and wear face coverings indoors drive down COVID-19 case rates and hospitalizations, health officers for the nine Bay Area jurisdictions that require face coverings in most indoor public spaces today reached consensus on criteria to lift those health orders.

These health officers continue to work together across the Bay Area to protect public health with a consistent regional approach, and to plan for the next phase of response to COVID-19 as this wave of the pandemic ebbs.

The counties of Contra Costa, Alameda, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara, Sonoma and the City of Berkeley will lift the indoor masking requirement in public spaces not subject to state and federal masking rules when all the following occur:

1) The jurisdiction reaches the moderate (yellow) COVID-19 transmission tier, as defined by the Centers for Disease Control & Prevention (CDC), and remains there for at least three weeks

AND

2) COVID-19 hospitalizations in the jurisdiction are low and stable, in the judgment of the health officer

AND

3) 80% of the jurisdiction’s total population is fully vaccinated with two doses of Pfizer or Moderna or one dose of Johnson & Johnson (booster doses not considered) NOTE – Total population includes residents under age 12 who are not yet eligible for vaccinations.

OR

Eight weeks have passed since a COVID-19 vaccine has been authorized for emergency use by federal and state authorities for 5- to 11-year-olds.

Curr

Most Bay Area health departments issued the masking requirements for their respective jurisdictions on August 3, following a summer surge in cases, hospitalizations and deaths.

But with regional data showing that the surge is now receding, and with the Bay Area one of the most vaccinated regions in the country, the health officers agree it is time to plan for a transition.

“It is no accident that transmission is slowing in Contra Costa County. Public health interventions, including the masking requirement, are working,” said Dr. Chris Farnitano, Contra Costa’s health officer. “We believe that health orders, along with vaccination, outreach and education are all adding layers of protection against COVID-19 in our community – and saving lives.”

Lifting a local indoor mask mandate would not prevent businesses, nonprofits, churches or others with public indoor spaces from imposing their own requirements. As COVID-19 easily spreads through airborne droplets, face coverings remain highly powerful in preventing its spread.

Each jurisdiction will rescind its order when criteria are met in that respective county or city. The criteria were developed to assist in determining the safest time to lift the indoor masking orders, based on regional scientific and medical consensus. The criteria also provide safety for school children, ages 5-11, who need the added protection of masks in the community to keep case rates low so they can remain in school until they can be vaccinated.

“Contra Costa is coming back strong, thanks to so many of our residents making healthy choices, such as getting vaccinated, or doing the courteous thing and wearing masks in places where the risk of transmission is a little higher,” said Diane Burgis, chair of the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors. “I’m thankful for every resident who has done their part.”

California’s health guidance for the use of face coverings will remain in effect after local masking requirements are lifted, meaning that people who are not fully vaccinated for COVID-19 must continue to wear masks in businesses and indoor public spaces.

The state also requires face coverings for everyone, regardless of vaccination status, in healthcare facilities, public transit and adult and senior care facilities. California’s masking guidelines in K-12 schools would also not be affected by changes to local health orders.

An FDA advisory committee is scheduled to consider an application from Pfizer-BioNTech to grant emergency use of its COVID-19 vaccine for 5- to 11-year-olds on October 26.

Visit cchealth.org/coronavirus for local information about COVID-19 and Contra Costa County’s emergency response to the pandemic.

County public meetings to continue online for 30 more days; COVID cases decrease by 27.9% over past two weeks

By Daniel Borsuk

In a show of respect for her 34 years of public service, retiring Contra Costa County Board of Supervisor Karen Mitchoff will manage the board’s gavel in 2022, a year when vice chair Federal Glover would have taken over the board leadership duties from current chair Diane Burgis of Brentwood.

Vice chair Glover of Pittsburg, who would have customarily been automatically approved by his supervisorial colleagues as chair for 2022, made the motion to transfer the board chair duties to Mitchoff as an act of respect for her public service dating back to 1981 in the office of late Contra Costa Sherriff-Coroner Richard Rainey as his executive secretary.

Glover, who represents District 5 on the board, will continue to serve as vice chair in 2022 and assume the chair duties in 2023.

Mitchoff of Pleasant Hill has served as District IV Supervisor since January 2011.

Supervisor Mitchoff had initially announced her candidacy for the position of Contra Costa County Recorder-Clerk when former officer holder Joe Canciamilla resigned and sentenced for violating Fair Political Practices Commission laws by spending more than $130,000 in campaign funds for personal uses. Mitchoff eventually stepped away from actively pursuing the County Recorder-Clerk post when Assistant Recorder-Clerk Debbi Cooper announced her candidacy and eventually won the supervisors’ approval to accept the top post.

“I talked to Supervisor Mitchoff, who plans to not run for reelection after next year, to serve as our chairperson as an honor,” said Supervisor Glover. “Therefore, I would make a motion to nominate Karen Mitchoff as chair for 2022 and Glover serve as vice chair for 2022.”

Glover’s motion passed on a 5-0 vote.

“I want to thank Mr. Glover to allow me to serve as board chair in my final year on the board,” said Mitchoff. “It shows how wonderful it is to be on this board. We are always respectful and kind.”

Mitchoff’s eventual departure raises the question of who might run for her position.

Among some of the potential candidates are Ken Carlson, a gay retired Concord police officer who serves on the Pleasant Hill City Council. Concord City Councilmember Edi Birsan has also frequently said he would run for the supervisorial post.

Mitchoff, a Portland, OR native, is a Cal State East Bay B.A. graduate in Human Development and has an elected and appointed public service record that includes election to the Pleasant Hill City Council in 2008 and service as mayor in 2010. She was appointed to the Pleasant Hill Recreation and Park District Board of Directors in 2003 and election to the Board of Directors in 2004 and 2006. From 1992 to 1996 she served on the Pleasant Hill Planning Commission.

Online Meetings for 30 More Days

The return of in person public meetings, especially at the Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors’ brand new $100 million county administration building in downtown Martinez, will be on hold for at least another 30 days because of Gov. Gavin Newsom’s signing of Assembly Bill 361. The law now allows public meeting to be held onlin through January 31, 2022. At least through November the supervisors and all county commissions and advisory panels – the Assessment Appeals Board, Merit Board, Planning Commission, and Measure X Advisory Commission – will continue to conduct meetings remotely.

The supervisor’s resolution states:

“The Board of Supervisors finds that in person meetings of the Board of Supervisors would present risks to the health or safety of the public, staff and officials attending meetings, in light of the high case rate of COVID-19 infections in the county.

“As authorized by Assembly Bill 361, effective immediately and for the next 30 days the Board of Supervisors, acting in all its capacities and all its subcommittees, will use teleconferencing for meetings with the provisions of Government Code section 54953e.”

County COVID-19 Cases and Vaccinations

In the meantime, the Contra Costa Health Services reported there were 1,532 COVID-19 cases reported in the past two weeks, for a 36.8 percent decrease. Seventy-three COVID-19 patients were hospitalized, a 27.9 decrease over the past two weeks, department records show.

The Contra Costa County Health Services also reported the county’s vaccination rate for residents ages 12 and older, who have received at least one dose of the COVID-19 vaccine, is 86.3 percent compared to a 75.9 percent national rate.

 

Beginning early Monday morning; “We’re drowning. There’s just not enough staff…” – Sutter Delta ER technician; “We stand by our offer, and SEIU should too: they negotiated this contract” – Sutter Health spokesperson

ANTIOCH, Calif. – Citing massive understaffing, difficult working conditions, and a series of unfair labor practices, more than 350 healthcare workers at Sutter Delta Medical Center in Antioch will strike next week. Workers will walk off the job and onto the strike picket line at 5 a.m. on Monday, October 4th.

Employees at Sutter Delta Medical Center say conditions are dire for caregivers and patients inside their facility as management ignores concerns about understaffing and working conditions. Workers are worried about patient and staff safety and say they’ve been pushed to the limit by their employer.

“We’re drowning. There’s just not enough staff,” said Jennifer Stone, an emergency room technician at Sutter Delta Medical Center. “We’re wearing too many hats – we’re talking down angry COVID patients, then we’re rushing to a code, then we’re talking to family members who just lost a loved one. We can’t give adequate care. We feel like management is ignoring our concerns and is leaving us to fend for ourselves. We can’t do it all anymore.”

Workers at Sutter Delta Medical Center say staffing shortages predate the COVID-19 pandemic and, as a result of years of poor staffing and management decisions by Sutter, the hospital already didn’t meet adequate staffing for average patient levels. Frontline caregivers say COVID exacerbated this already strained infrastructure, and their employer’s response to the pandemic has only worsened the preexisting crisis.

WHAT:          Caregivers in their uniforms will walk off the job joined by their coworkers and supporters, including SEIU-UHW President Dave Regan. Later, caregivers in their uniforms and scrubs will form picket lines, hold signs, chant, and give speeches.

WHEN:          MONDAY, October 4     5 a.m. Walkout    11 a.m. Speaking program

WHERE:       Sutter Delta Medical Center, 3901 Lone Tree Way (main entrance), Antioch

SEIU-United Healthcare Workers West (SEIU-UHW) is a healthcare justice union of more than 100,000 healthcare workers, patients, and healthcare activists united to ensure affordable, accessible, high-quality care for all Californians, provided by valued and respected healthcare workers. Learn more at www.seiu-uhw.org.

Sutter Health Responds

Sutter Delta Medical Center received a strike notice from SEIU in late September. In response a Sutter spokesperson issued the following statement.

“We received notice that SEIU intends to strike for five days at Sutter Delta Medical Center in Antioch beginning October 4. We are disappointed union leaders have chosen to distract from patient care by taking this action, especially at a time when we should be focusing our attention on caring for our community.

The union has proved its disregard for our patients and communities by engaging in a strike while refusing to make a good faith effort to reach a deal. In fact, Sutter Delta negotiators twice offered to work with a neutral federal mediator and the union refused –twice. It’s a clear statement that the union is more interested in flexing its political power than reaching a fair agreement on behalf of its members.

We stand by our offer, and SEIU should too: they negotiated this contract, were confident enough to place it on a ballot, and it was recently approved by more than 3,000 employees at seven other SEIU-represented hospitals across our system.

We value our caregivers and their continued commitment to compassionate patient care in the face of an unprecedented health crisis, which is why our proposed contract guaranteed pay and benefits that are as good or better than others in the area:

o   13% salary increase over four years: 3% yearly salary increases each year for 3 years and a 4% increase in year 4

o   100% employer paid health coverage for employees and their families.

o   Funding to support access for our employees to education, credentialing and growth opportunities and creates a pipeline for new hires.

We will continue to focus on our patients, as always, despite the union’s strike. Regardless of the union’s actions, our commitment to providing our patients with high-quality, safe patient care remains unchanged.”

Washington—Senator Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), on Wednesday, introduced the U.S. Air Travel Public Safety Act, a bill that would require all passengers on domestic airline flights to either be fully vaccinated, have recently tested negative for COVID-19 or have fully recovered from COVID-19.

The bill would require the Secretary of Health and Human Services, in consultation with the Federal Aviation Administration, to develop national vaccination standards and procedures related to COVID-19 and domestic air travel in order to prevent future outbreaks of the disease.

The bill would also require the CDC’s Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices to make recommendations for COVID-19 vaccine use in health care settings and among health care personnel in other settings.

The legislation builds on a current CDC requirement that all air passengers traveling to the United States from a foreign country must provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test result or documentation of recovery from COVID-19. Last week, the Biden administration announced it will work with airlines to implement additional protocols to prevent the spread of COVID-19 on international flights.

“We know that air travel during the 2020 holiday season contributed to last winter’s devastating COVID-19 surge. We simply cannot allow that to happen again,” Feinstein said.

“Ensuring that air travelers protect themselves and their destination communities from this disease is critical to prevent the next surge, particularly if we confront new, more virulent variants of COVID-19. This bill complements similar travel requirements already in place for all air passengers – including Americans – who fly to the United States from foreign countries. This includes flights from foreign countries with lower COVID-19 rates than many U.S. states.

“It only makes sense that we also ensure the millions of airline passengers that crisscross our country aren’t contributing to further transmission, especially as young children remain ineligible to be vaccinated.”

The bill is supported by the Infectious Diseases Society of America and the American Public Health Association.

Dr. Barbara D. Alexander, president of the Infectious Diseases Society of America and professor of medicine and pathology at Duke University School of Medicine said: “Vaccination is a critical strategy to end the COVID-19 pandemic, and vaccination requirements in multiple settings are an important mechanism to boost vaccination rates, prevent infections and hospitalizations and save lives. The Infectious Diseases Society of America supports Senator Feinstein’s legislation to require vaccination for domestic air travel as part of our nation’s broader COVID-19 vaccination strategy.”

Background

• According to a study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, COVID-19 vaccines continued to offer strong protection after the Delta variant became predominant over the summer. People who were fully vaccinated were five times less likely to be infected and more than 10 times less likely to be admitted to the hospital or die compared to those who were unvaccinated.

• According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, the United States is seeing its highest weekly totals of pediatric COVID-19 cases since the pandemic began. The CDC also found that in August, emergency department visits and hospital admissions among children were higher in states with lower vaccine rates and lower in states with higher vaccine rates.

• According to a study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, people traveling to other counties or states last year contributed to higher COVID-19 case numbers in their destination communities. Authors of the study later observed that this was especially true during the 2020 summer and winter holidays.

• According to a Mayo Clinic Proceedings study, COVID-19 testing requirements for airline passengers could have a meaningful effect on detecting active infections either immediately before or after a flight.

• According to a poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation, about three in 10 people surveyed who were waiting to be vaccinated said they would be more likely to get vaccinated if airlines required passengers to be vaccinated. This number increased to about four in 10 among unvaccinated individuals who said they would only get the vaccine if required.

To contact the senator’s office, visit Contact – United States Senator for California (senate.gov).

“Case Rates for unvaccinated people in the county…peaked on Sept. 13, one day before the new health orders were issued.”

“…we are a long way from the levels of community transmission we experienced in spring…” – Contra Costa Health Services spokesman

By Allen Payton

The statistics on the Contra Costa Health Services Coronavirus Dashboard show COVID hospitalizations and cases in the county were already declining before the new health orders by county health officer, Dr. Chris Farnitano, issued them on Sept. 14. While the data trails the report by seven days, as the dashboard states, “data from the last 7 days is still being reported”, all the COVID-related stats continued to decline before the orders went into effect last Wednesday, Sept. 22.

The press release from CCHS on Sept. 15 read, “While the peak of the surge seems to have passed.” But the statistics showed it had passed. (See related article)

Hospital Bed Utilization

The 7-Day Average COVID-19 Inpatient Bed Utilization in the county decreased from 11.5% on Sept. 8 to 9.9% by the time the orders were issued on the Sept. 15. That continued to decrease to 8.1% on Sept. 22. They have continued to decrease through Sunday to 7.3% and were on the decrease since Aug. 28 when the percentages were first included in the stats, from 13.6%.

The statistics also show the percentage of COVID inpatient beds to Contra Costa Total Hospitalizations has decreased from a high of 19.4% on Sept. 6 to 10.7% on Sunday, Sept. 26.

In addition, of all the inpatient ICU beds in the county, about one-third have been filled by COVID patients has decreased from a high of 46% to 29% between Aug. 28 and Sept. 26.

New Cases

The Seven Day Rolling Average number of new COVID cases in the county peaked on Sept. 10 at 217.3, almost two weeks before the new health orders went into effect on Wed., Sept. 22.

Case Rates

The Case Rates for unvaccinated people in the county at 40 per 100,000 population and fully vaccinated people at 8.7 peaked on Sept. 13, one day before the new health orders were issued. Both continued to decline through Sept. 19 to 29.6 and 7.4 respectively, three days before the orders went into effect.

Questions for Farnitano & CCHS Staff

In light of that information, Farnitano and health services staff were asked the following questions via email Monday evening: “Why are the latest orders still in place? Are you willing to lift them, now? If not, what else must occur for that to happen?”

Response From CCHS Staff

Karl Fischer, Contra Costa Health Services spokesman responded, “For the past few weeks Contra Costa County’s COVID-19 transmission data have been trending in the right direction after a severe, sudden spike in new cases, hospitalizations and deaths earlier this summer.  

It’s also true that county data remain elevated since that spike, far above where they were when California relaxed its health orders in mid-June. As the press release you quoted correctly points out, our average daily case rate is similar to what we were recording in February, on the downslope of another severe spike. That information is also available on the dashboard.  

It is no accident that our county is now trending in the right direction.  

COVID-related public health measures, including recent health orders requiring people to wear masks when visiting indoor public spaces and show proof of vaccination or a recent, negative test result to enter the indoor parts of some high-risk public establishments, are helping to reduce transmission of the virus in our county.  

For example, on Aug. 3, the day our indoor masking health order took effect, the 7-day average number of daily new COVID-19 cases reported in our county was 412. One month later, on Sept. 3, that number had dropped to 245.9.

We hope to see similar improvement in coming weeks from the most recent health order, which took effect just last week. But, as I mentioned, we are a long way from the levels of community transmission we experienced in spring, when the state briefly seemed to be emerging from the pandemic.  

With winter approaching, a season where the spread of respiratory viruses such as COVID-19 is common, we are doing everything we can to prevent another severe surge, most importantly working to increase vaccination rates across our community – to save lives, keep our schools and businesses open, and our hospitals functioning.”

However, as the Dashboard shows, Contra Costa County was already trending in the right direction” two weeks before the new health orders went into effect.

Additional Questions

An additional question was sent late Wednesday afternoon, asking, “since Contra Costa was already significantly trending in the right direction through not just Sept. 3 but it continued through Sept. 22, with just the indoor mask-wearing order, why the need for the additional proof of vaccination or testing mandate? Is it an effort to pressure the unvaccinated to get vaccinated by taking away more of their freedoms?”

09/30/21 UPDATE: CCHS spokesman, Karl Fischer responded, “Contra Costa has made significant progress in lowering the number of new reported cases and hospitalizations in recent weeks. But, as I mentioned in my last response, our transmission data are still substantially far above the levels considered safe by the State of California when it lifted its health order on June 15.

I know you are aware of this information, as it is available on our public dashboard, but our 7-day rolling average number of daily new COVID-19 cases was 152.9 on Sept. 22, compared to 45.3 on June 15. Per capita, on June 15 we averaged 1.5 daily new hospital admissions due to COVID-19 for unvaccinated people, compared to 5.5 on Sept. 22. Contra Costa has a long way to go before it reaches the transmission levels the state considered just safe enough to reopen, just three months ago.

Contra Costa is committed to doing everything in its power to reduce COVID-19 transmission as quickly and effectively as possible – lives depend on it. That is why the county this month added a new, temporary requirement for patrons using the indoor areas of certain establishments where the virus is at high risk of spreading to show proof of vaccination at the door, or a recent, negative test result.

We believe this health order will help our community continue its progress reducing COVID-19 transmission, perhaps even accelerate it, and it may also help to head off another massive holiday surge in cases, hospitalizations and deaths, like the one we experienced last winter.

We encourage anyone who is eligible to get vaccinated. Our transmission data are now slowing down thanks to the 80%+ of county residents who have already chosen to get vaccinated, and the willingness of the majority to temporarily endure inconvenience so we all may eventually enjoy living in a community where there is no elevated risk of contracting a deadly but highly preventable disease.

Why No Recovery Documentation Option in Contra Costa?

On Wednesday, U.S. Senator Diane Feinstein (D-CA) on Wednesday, introduced the U.S. Air Travel Public Safety Act, a bill that would require all passengers on domestic airline flights to either be fully vaccinated, have recently tested negative for COVID-19 or have fully recovered from COVID-19. According to her office’s press release, “the legislation builds on a current CDC requirement that all air passengers traveling to the United States from a foreign country must provide proof of a negative COVID-19 test result or documentation of recovery from COVID-19.”

In response, the additional questions were sent to CCHS staff: “Why isn’t that last option, recovery documentation, being offered to people in Contra Costa to comply with the latest health orders if it’s allowed to be used for people traveling into our country? They aren’t even required to provide proof of vaccination. But we Americans do to participate in something that takes much less time than an international flight. Their plane trips are much longer than an hour which is usually the length of time it takes to have an indoor, sitdown meal. If that’s the science the federal government is following, why isn’t the CCHS also following it?”

Fischer replied, “Contra Costa Health Services did not include a provision for proof of prior infection in the Sept. 14 health order because, in our analysis of available research, we determined that the science remains unsettled around the efficacy or duration of natural immunity following a COVID-19 infection. We do have a better understanding of immunity provided by the available COVID-19 vaccines, thanks to the extensive clinical trials performed to ensure their safety and efficacy before they were made available to the public, and their performance in protecting millions of people worldwide this year.

While it’s true that someone who has COVID-19 must wait 90 days after their infection ends before testing again, they can receive COVID-19 vaccine as soon as their isolation period ends. So, in no case are patrons left without options for using the indoor portions of establishments affected by this order.”

Those who choose not to get the vaccine for one reason, or another will have to take a test and prove negative within three days each time they want to dine indoors at a restaurant, go to the gym, a bar, to the movies or another entertainment venue, such as a bowling alley.

NCQA rated Kaiser Permanente Northern California among highest for consumer experience, prevention, and treatment

By Antonia Ehlers, PR and Media Relations, Kaiser Permanente Northern California

OAKLAND, CA – For the sixth year, Kaiser Permanente Northern California’s Medicare health plan is rated 5 out of 5 stars, making it the highest rated plan in the region – and among the highest rated in the country.

In the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) Health Plan Ratings 2021, published today, Kaiser Permanente’s Medicare health plan in Northern California received 5 stars and its commercial health plan received 4.5 stars. Kaiser Permanente’s Southern California region received the same ratings – making the two plans among the highest rated in California and the nation.

“Kaiser Permanente continues to be recognized nationally for what matters most to our members and patients: high quality care and exceptional service,” said Carrie Owen Plietz, FACHE, president of Kaiser Permanente’s Northern California region. “We are proud to be a leader in health care delivery and these ratings, which are so consistent over time, demonstrate our commitment to putting our patients and their health at the center of all we do.”

“This recognition is a tribute to the dedication and expertise of our highly-skilled physicians, nurses, and staff,” said Richard S. Isaacs, MD, FACS, CEO and executive director of The Permanente Medical Group. “Through our innovative, personalized, and technologically advanced approach to health care, we continue to transform care delivery while having a positive and often life-changing impact on the health and well-being of our members and patients.”

NCQA analyzed over 1,000 health plans in the nation – private, Medicare, Medicaid – for quality and service. Only 17 health plans in the country, or about 1.6 percent, were rated 5 out of 5 stars. In all, Kaiser Permanente has six of those highest rated plans.

NCQA is a national, private not-for-profit organization that surveys health plans for performance in a wide range of clinical service measures including consumer experience, prevention and treatment. All Kaiser Permanente health plans were rated 4 stars or higher. For the sixth year in a row, all Kaiser Permanente Medicare health plans were rated highest (or tied for the highest) in the areas they serve. Kaiser Permanente serves more than 12.5 million members in eight states and the District of Columbia.

The NCQA’s Health Insurance Plan Ratings are based on combined scores for health plans in Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set®, commonly called HEDIS; the Consumer Assessment of Healthcare Providers and Systems®, or CAHPS; and NCQA Accreditation standards scores.

The ratings and methodology are posted on the NCQA’s website at www.ncqa.org.

About Kaiser Permanente

Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. We are recognized as one of America’s leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. Founded in 1945, Kaiser Permanente has a mission to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve almost 12.5 million members in 8 states and the District of Columbia. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal Permanente Medical Group physicians, specialists, and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the-art care delivery, and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education, and the support of community health. http://about.kaiserpermanente.org