From the Los Angeles Times: By Charles Ornstein and Tracy Weber, Times Staff Writers August 10, 2006 Kaiser Permanente has agreed to pay a $2-million fine after state HMO regulators found that its Northern California kidney transplant program imperiled hundreds of patients, in some cases delaying critical surgeries or losing track of patients altogether, four… Read More »
From the Seattle Times: Health plan fined for denying claims By Kyung M. Song Seattle Times staff reporter Kaiser Foundation Health Plan has been fined $65,000 for denying claims from 299 policyholders in Southwest Washington who received care in emergency rooms during 2003 and 2004. Insurance Commissioner Mike Kriedler announced Friday that Kaiser violated a… Read More »
From San Francisco Business Times: by Chris Rauber A whistleblower who helped instigate regulatory and media investigations of Kaiser Permanente’s troubled Northern California kidney-transplant unit has filed a wrongful termination lawsuit, alleging that senior Kaiser medical-group officials ignored several warnings about mounting problems in the program. In early May, under pressure from federal and state… Read More »
From San Francisco Business Times by Chris Rauber The former administrator of Kaiser Permanente’s troubled Northern California kidney transplant unit has filed a wrongful termination lawsuit against the health-care giant, seeking at least $5 million in damages. The suit, filed Friday in San Francisco Superior Court by the former administrative head of the unit, David… Read More »
From an outraged family member of a Kaiser Permanente kidney patient. Kaiser continues to deny that any patients were harmed by its bungling: My sister, Kim, is currently under the Kaiser Program. Her kidneys failed 6 yrs ago, (March 2000) she went into a coma and was not expected to ever come out. She is… Read More »
From the Los Angeles Times: U.S. Berates Kaiser Over Kidney Effort A withering report says the transplant program was poorly planned, staffed and run. The HMO does not admit or rebut the accusations. By Charles Ornstein and Tracy Weber, Times Staff Writers June 24, 2006 Virtually every part of Kaiser Permanente’s massive kidney transplant program… Read More »
Kaiser S.F. CEO Mike Alexander to retire San Francisco Business Times by Chris Rauber In the latest apparent fallout from serious problems at Kaiser Permanente’s Northern California kidney transplant unit, Mike Alexander, the CEO of Kaiser’s San Francisco Medical Center, will retire. Alexander’s decision was detailed in a Kaiser emailed memo issued internally on Wednesday… Read More »
Regulators say only a handful of people needing transplants have been moved to two UC programs since the HMO announced the closure of its program last month. By Tracy Weber and Charles Ornstein, Times Staff Writers June 16, 2006 More than a month after Kaiser Permanente announced it was closing its troubled kidney transplant program… Read More »
Four Year Delay and No Kidney Transplant – Kaiser Patient Seeks Punitive Damages Based on Misguided Kaiser Kidney Program SACRAMENTO, Calif., June 19 /PRNewswire/ — “I need a kidney, I need help and I can’t wait any longer,” said a frustrated Kaiser kidney patient Bernard Burks, who was put on a list of patients awaiting… Read More »
From San Francisco Business Times: Kaiser Permanente appointed a new administrative director Thursday to head its troubled Northern California kidney transplant unit. The San Francisco-based unit, in the process of being closed after intense pressure from state and federal regulators, had been headed by Dr. Sharon Inokuchi. Kaiser officials said June 15 that Linda Mann,… Read More »