Kaiser, Don't Deny

I cannot begin to tell you the horror stories I have heard

As a former employee for Kaiser Permanente Member Services, I can attest first hand to how poor access to mental health department is. In my seven years there, I spent my time dealing with member grievances, and it was our job to either look for a sooner appointment, or to determine why the care they so desperately need is “‘not medically indicated.”

I cannot begin to tell you the horror stories I have heard. I worked statewide, and there was not one mental health department doing it right. The solution in recent years has been to refer people out, but this does not always happen and isn’t available in all regions. Kaiser Peramente’s attitude toward mental health is not only callous, but dangerous too. They know they can afford to pay any fine provided and since it’s cheaper to pay a fine, they won’t ever fix the problem. We would get a heads-up of any negative media coverage, of which we’ve had several, and were told what we could and could not say. There have been many lawsuits against Kaiser Permanente due to their poor mental health access.

Amanda
Former Kaiser Staff