March 6th, 2012
Doctors San Pablo Caregivers to Picket Hospital Tomorrow
What: Informational picket* Where: Doctors Medical Center San Pablo, 2000 Vale Road, San Pablo, 94806 When: Wednesday, March 7, 11:30am to 1:30pm Visuals: Caregivers marching in front of hospital with picket signs and bullhorns San Pablo, California – Members of the National Union of Healthcare Workers (NUHW) at Doctors Medical Center in San Pablo will […]
March 5th, 2012
Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital Workers Endorse Sergio Sanchez for Supervisor
Salinas, California – Members of the National Union of Healthcare Workers (NUHW) at Salinas Valley Memorial Hospital (SVMH) unanimously voted on Friday to endorse Salinas City Council Member Sergio Sanchez for Monterey County Supervisor. As both Council Member and as District Director to Assembly Member Luis Alejo, Sanchez played an indispensable role in bringing the […]
March 1st, 2012
Sacramento Business Journal: Kaiser ordered to stop denying access to some therapies
Kathy Robertson, Senior Staff Writer – Sacramento Business Journal
Date: Wednesday, February 29, 2012, 6:43am PST
State regulators have ordered Kaiser Permanente to stop denying members access to physical, occupational and speech therapy services.
The cease-and-desist order — issued Monday by the California Department of Managed Health Care — follows member complaints that Kaiser denies coverage for these services for non-physical conditions such as developmental delays, stuttering and autism without determining medical necessity.
“Kaiser Health Plan’s policy to deny physical, occupational and speech therapy services for non-physical conditions is not permitted under the Knox-Keene Act,” Anthony Manzanetti, DMHC’s chief of enforcement, said in a news release. “The DMHC is taking this action to ensure Kaiser follows the law.”
The DMHC action was applauded Tuesday by the National Union of Healthcare Workers, which represents more than 2,200 psychologists, licensed clinical social workers, marriage and family therapist and other mental health clinicians in California.
The union — which is in the midst of contentious contract negotiations with Kaiser — released a report in November that blasts Kaiser for denying patient care for certain mental health conditions.
“DMHC’s action reinforces what we’ve been saying for months about Kaiser’s failure to provide its patients with timely and appropriate mental health services,” Clem Papazian, a licensed clinical social worker who works for Kaiser in Oakland, said in a statement.
March 1st, 2012
DMHC’s Cease and Desist Order Exposes Kaiser Permanente’s Pattern and Practice of Denying Care to Mental Health Patients
The National Union of Healthcare Workers (NUHW) applauds the California Department of Managed Health Care (DMHC) for issuing a cease and desist order to Kaiser Foundation Health Plan yesterday in response to the HMO’s pattern and practice of denying physical, occupational and speech therapy services to patients with “non-physical” conditions, including mental illnesses and developmental […]
February 29th, 2012
Sacramento Business Journal: Kaiser ordered to stop denying access to some therapies
Kathy Robertson, Senior Staff Writer – Sacramento Business Journal
Date: Wednesday, February 29, 2012, 6:43am PST
State regulators have ordered Kaiser Permanente to stop denying members access to physical, occupational and speech therapy services.
The cease-and-desist order — issued Monday by the California Department of Managed Health Care — follows member complaints that Kaiser denies coverage for these services for non-physical conditions such as developmental delays, stuttering and autism without determining medical necessity.
“Kaiser Health Plan’s policy to deny physical, occupational and speech therapy services for non-physical conditions is not permitted under the Knox-Keene Act,” Anthony Manzanetti, DMHC’s chief of enforcement, said in a news release. “The DMHC is taking this action to ensure Kaiser follows the law.”