Kaiser Permanente

Kaiser Permanente (; KP) is an American integrated managed care consortium headquartered in Oakland, California. Founded in 1945 by industrialist Henry J. Kaiser and physician Sidney R. Garfield, the organization was initially established to provide medical services at Kaiser's shipyards, steel mills and other facilities, before being opened to the general public. Kaiser Permanente operates as a consortium comprising three distinct but interdependent entities: the Kaiser Foundation Health Plan (KFHP) and its regional subsidiaries, Kaiser Foundation Hospitals, and the regional Permanente Medical Groups. As of 2022, Kaiser Permanente serves eight states (California, Colorado, Georgia, Hawaii, Maryland, Oregon, Virginia, and Washington) as well as the District of Columbia and is the largest managed care organization in the United States. Each Permanente Medical Group functions as a separate for-profit partnership or professional corporation within its specific territory. While these groups do not publicly disclose their financial results, they are primarily funded by reimbursements from the Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, one of the largest not-for-profit organizations in the United States. Kaiser employs over 300,000 individuals, including more than 98,000 physicians and nurses. The mixed-profit Kaiser Foundation Hospitals operate 40 hospitals and more than 614 medical offices, similarly funded by reimbursements from the Kaiser Foundation Health Plan. Kaiser Permanente's quality of care is often highly rated, attributed to its focus on preventive care, salaried physicians (as opposed to fee-for-service compensation), and efforts to reduce hospital stays by optimizing patient care planning. It has had disputes with employees' unions, faced charges for falsification of records and patient dumping, been under regulatory scrutiny for the quality of its mental health services, and seen criticism over the size of its financial reserves.