Kaiser is drawing complaints from employers who say the company’s policies are no longer the bargain for quality care that they once were. The Los Angeles Times says (http://lat.ms/13FtqWK ) Kaiser Permanente rejects the criticism, reporting it’s still a great bargain with prices that are often 10% below its rivals.
Officials managing retired state employees and public employees in Los Angeles and San Francisco have criticized ever-rising premiums. Officials at CalPERS – which is the nation’s third-largest health care buyer – say Kaiser’s premiums have gone up 65% since 2007. Other HMO premiums have gone up, too, but not as much.