Kaiser Health Insurance - Essay Example

"Kaiser Health Insurance" is a perfect example of a paper on the health system. Kaiser health insurance was started on 21st July 1945 by its two founders Sidney R. Garfield and Henry J. Kaiser. The company was started after the Second World War to offer improved health services for the low members of society. After the war, it was necessary to revive the economy, which would be impossible without health services. The headquarters of the company is located in Oakland, California, US. Expansion in the last 75 years has seen the company grow into three divisions. Regional Permanente Medical groups, Kaiser foundational hospital, and Kaiser Foundation health plan. This paper focuses on the latter and its contribution to providing affordable health care in America.

Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc. has developed further and opened subsidiary branches across the United States. They include Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, District of Colombia, Maryland, Colorado Hawaii, Georgia, Washington, Oregon, and Virginia. The subsidiaries report to the parent organization in California. Since 2000 the number of uninsured has fallen from 66% to 56 %. Statistical data indicate that people who lack a health insurance cover faced a 40% increase in death rate than those insured.
Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc offers the three standard insurance policies. They include the preferred provider Organization (PPO). Kaiser's PPO plan has several benefits for its customers. They include the choice to see any doctor in the network service. Some of the hospitals affiliated with Kaiser include; Holy Cross Hospital, Sibley Memorial Hospital, Stafford Hospital, Medstar Washington Hospital Center, Virginia Hospital Center, Saint Agnes Hospital, Reston Hospital Center, and Greater Baltimore Medical Center (GBMC). Collaboration with these hospital facilities provides a range of services for different clients based on their needs. The cost spent stays low as long as the patient remains within the network. In the treatment process, no paperwork is involved while seeking medical attention because all the providers are interconnected. For customers seeking specialist services, they need referrals in the system. Pharmacy options are convenient, with over 60,000 national wide. Kaiser offers two options under this plan the participating provider option and the nonparticipating provider options. Participating provider option provides the following; the minimal cost of out-of-pocket cost, availability of preventive care at reduced or no cost, choice of 658,000 provider's national comprehensive, and the simple copay for doctor's office visit. On the other hand, nonparticipating providers offer preventive care at a low cost—coinsurance services after reaching a calendar year deductibles.

The second plan offered by Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc is the Health Management Organization (HMO). The benefits of the program include an assignment for a personal doctor for those seeking routine medical services. The doctor is aware of the challenges facing each patient and in a position to act according to the patient's needs. Secondly, patients copay for covered services, such as office visits, reduced process while seeking treatment where there is no paperwork, no referrals for specialists, for example, optometry—patients copay for prescription of drugs in need from Kaiser Permanente pharmacy where they get. Copays are the number of client parts to receive specific services per service time. For example, Kaiser requires a $10 copay for patients to see a doctor. If the patient were charged $50, they would only pay $10, and Kaiser would pay $40. This plan is suitable for patients suffering from conditions requiring regular checkups (Christensen, Waldeck, & Fogg, 2017). Kaiser Foundation Health offers a focus on the prevention of diseases rather than cure. It's possible with the availability of out-of-pocket service where a family can have a single out-of-pocket, or each member might have a plan of his own. An out-of-pocket is a service where family members or the family pays for copays and coinsurance until they reach a specific limit they cannot pay anymore (Jordan, 2018). Kaiser Foundation Health plan now takes responsibility for future costs.

The third insurance medical cover offered by Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc is the Point of Service (POS) plan. This is a plan provided by combining the three founding groups of Kaiser Foundation Health and, under a written agreement, comes with a conducive service for customers. Some of the benefits that come up with the plan include preventive care where patients can seek health services at reduced prices. Kaiser provides the choice of provider where the patient decides where they would like to seek medical treatment. Your Kaiser doctor can refer you to any specialist for specialized services. Finally, patients can get pharmacy networks from the over 60,000 pharmacies available nationally.