Kaiser Permanente must overhaul behavioral health care services and pay a $50 million fine under a settlement agreement announced Thursday by the California Department of Managed Health Care.
Under the settlement, Kaiser will also make investments totaling $150 million over five years toward improving behavioral health care services.
The $50 million fine is the highest the state's managed health care agency has ever levied, said DMHC Director Mary Watanabe. The state agency found Kaiser Permanente canceled behavioral health appointments and, in many cases didn't give enrollees appointments that met timely access and clinical standards that were required despite a strike by mental health clinicians in August 2022.
The settlement was welcomed by the National Union of Healthcare Workers, which represents the more than 4,000 psychologists, social workers and marriage and family therapists employed by Kaiser Permanente in California. In a statement about the settlement on Thursday, Kaiser CEO Greg Adams said there has been "an unprecedented rise in demand for mental health care services over the past three years, largely driven by the global pandemic and its aftermath."
Kaiser has increased staffing and facilities, and since 2020, has invested an additional $1.1 billion to provide mental health treatment for members, Adams said.
Österreich Neuesten Nachrichten, Österreich Schlagzeilen
Similar News:Sie können auch ähnliche Nachrichten wie diese lesen, die wir aus anderen Nachrichtenquellen gesammelt haben.
Negotiations to resume between Kaiser Permanente, workersRoughly 75,000 workers represented by the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions walked off the job from Wednesday through Friday last week
Weiterlesen »
Kaiser agrees to $200M settlement after behavioral health investigationsThe settlement comes in the midst of another labor dispute for Kaiser. More than 75,000 lower-paid Kaiser employees in five states carried out a three-day walkout as they appealed for better pay. T…
Weiterlesen »
Kaiser Permanente, Unions Reach Deal on New ContractsAgreement follows largest healthcare strike on record
Weiterlesen »
Kaiser Permanente, workers union reach tentative agreementKaiser Permanente, workers union reach tentative agreement
Weiterlesen »
Kaiser Permanente, unionized workers reach tentative agreement, union saysIn Denver, it was another day without a new contract for the 3,000 workers striking for better pay, an increase in hiring efforts, and improved patient care.
Weiterlesen »