Kaiser Permanente’s Medicare Plans in California Get Top Ratings In The Nation For The Second Straight Year

Kaiser Permanente has announced that its Medicare plans in California again have received an overall rating of 5 stars for parts C and D, the highest rating possible from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).

Through the Medicare Star Quality Rating System, CMS assigns scores of 1 to 5 stars to Medicare plans based on 50 quality and service measures.

This is the second year that CMS has awarded such ratings to Medicare plans around the country, and the second year that Kaiser Permanente has the only 5-star rating in California. The new 2013 ratings for the state encompass Kaiser Permanente’s Northern California and Southern California regions.

“Kaiser Permanente is a model for health care in this country and this Medicare 5-Star rating confirms the value we provide to patients," said Robert Pearl, MD, executive director and CEO of The Permanente Medical Group. “The combination of superb physicians and the most advanced information technology systems leads to excellence in quality and service. By providing coordinated medical care and greater ease of access, we are able to achieve outstanding outcomes both in prevention of disease and management of the most complex medical conditions. I applaud the U.S. Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services for helping shift the focus of our country from rewarding volume to recognizing superior outcomes. If the whole nation could match this 5-star performance, thousands of lives could be saved each year."

The 2013 star ratings for Medicare health plans are available on the Medicare “Plan Finder” on the www.medicare.gov website. Plans that earn 5 stars are designated with a special “High Performing” icon for easy identification.

“Kaiser Permanente is a member-focused organization, and our staff and physicians in California – working together and enabled by our electronic medical record and integrated delivery system – make it their mission to provide high-quality care and service to all of our members, including our Medicare members,” said Kaiser Permanente Northern California Regional President Gregory Adams. “We are proud and gratified to receive the CMS’s top possible rating for the second straight year, and we are working hard to continually improve and better serve our membership.”   

Star ratings provide Medicare beneficiaries with information to help them assess health plan quality of care and service delivery to make an informed choice when selecting a Medicare plan. Plan performance summary star ratings are assessed each year and may change from one year to the next. 

In addition to receiving high quality service and satisfaction, 5-star excellence means that Medicare beneficiaries may enroll in a 5-star plan from December 8, 2012 to November 30, 2013 without having to wait until the next annual enrollment period.

The 2013 Star ratings are consistent with the recently released National Committee for Quality Assurance assessment of the nation's health plans, in which Kaiser Permanente's Medicare plans in Southern California and Northern California ranked No. 1 and 3 in the U.S., respectively.

Medicare beneficiaries can learn more about the Medicare Star Quality Ratings and Kaiser Permanente’s Medicare plans by visiting kp.org/medicarestars, medicare.gov, or by calling 1-800-MEDICARE (1-800-633-4227) 24 hours a day, seven days a week.