Prevention as a Priority: Kaiser Permanente Rated Highest by NCQA for Breast, Colorectal-Cancer Screenings

Among Medicare health plans, Kaiser Permanente is top-rated for 15 effectiveness-of-care measures

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Dec 22, 2014, 03:28 ET

OAKLAND, Calif., Dec. 22, 2014 /PRNewswire/ -- Geborah is a mom, family therapist, and Medicare member at Kaiser Permanente in Southern California. And thanks to Kaiser Permanente's persistence, Geborah is a breast-cancer survivor.

"I started to get calls and emails, and I think I might have gotten a letter," Geborah said. "And finally when I went in to have a mammogram, sure enough, they found something. … If I had maintained my stubborn stance, and I hadn't relented, I'd have advancing cancer."

Geborah's mammogram detected something suspicious, and an ultrasound confirmed that she had early stage cancer. And that's exactly why Kaiser Permanente does a lot of testing. Early stage cancers are much easier to beat than those at advanced stages.

Kaiser Permanente isn't the only health care company in the nation espousing the life-saving benefits of cancer screenings — but it is the best. According to the National Committee of Quality Assurance's Quality Compass data for Medicare members, Kaiser Permanente health plans lead the nation in breast cancer screening, colorectal screening, cholesterol management and 12 other effectiveness of care measures.

"We know prevention saves the lives of our members," said Pat Courneya, MD, executive vice president and chief medical officer for Kaiser Foundation Hospitals and Kaiser Foundation Health Plan. "While Kaiser Permanente's excellence is grounded in our clinical experience and evidence-based medicine approach, our focus on prevention and early intervention gives our members better opportunities for wellness."

"We are proud of the results from NCQA," said Amy Compton-Phillips, MD, chief quality officer, The Permanente Federation. "At Kaiser Permanente, our physicians, nurses and care teams make it a priority to encourage members to get the tests we know can make a difference in their health."

Kaiser Permanente Southern California has been the top-rated Medicare health plan for breast cancer screenings for the past three years. And, a Kaiser Permanente Medicare plan has been No. 1 for the past five years.

According to the NCQA Quality Compass data, Kaiser Permanente received top marks for:

Breast cancer screening (Southern California Region)
Colorectal cancer screening (Mid-Atlantic States Region)
Adult BMI assessment (Georgia Region)
Use of spirometry testing in assessment and diagnosis of chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (Southern California Region)
Persistence of beta blocker treatment after heart attack (Colorado Region)
Cholesterol management CAD — LDL level <100 (Mid-Atlantic States Region)
Comprehensive diabetes care — blood pressure control (<140/80) (Southern California Region)
Comprehensive diabetes care — blood pressure control (<140/90) (Colorado Region)
Comprehensive diabetes care — HbA1c testing (Colorado Region)
Comprehensive diabetes care — LDL Level <100 (Hawaii Region)
Comprehensive diabetes care — LDL Screening (tie, Hawaii and Mid-Atlantic States Regions)
Comprehensive diabetes care — medical attention for nephropathy
Osteoporosis management in women who had a fracture (Southern California Region)
Follow-up after hospitalization for mental illness — 7 days (Colorado Region)
Follow-up after hospitalization for mental illness — 30 days (Colorado Region)

NCQA's annual Quality Compass data for Medicare assesses the performance of national health plans on 35 important clinical and service standards, including medication management and respiratory conditions. Of the nearly 400 Medicare health plans considered by NCQA, no plan had more No. 1 ratings than Kaiser Permanente's 15 top rankings.

This recognition by NCQA is the latest in a string of national accolades Kaiser Permanente's Medicare health plans have received in the past several months. In mid-September, the NCQA ranked all seven Kaiser Permanente health plans in the Top 10 (including the Top 3) in the country. In October, Kaiser Permanente's Medicare health plans in six of our seven regions earned 5 stars — the highest overall rating for quality and service — from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services. Kaiser Permanente Georgia received 4.5 stars.

NCQA is a private, non-profit organization dedicated to improving health care quality. NCQA accredits and certifies a wide range of health care organizations. It also recognizes clinicians and practices in key areas of performance. NCQA is committed to providing health care quality information for consumers, purchasers, health care providers and researchers.

About Kaiser Permanente
Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. We are recognized as one of America's leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. Founded in 1945, our mission is to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve approximately 9.5 million members in eight states and the District of Columbia. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal physicians, specialists and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the-art care delivery and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education and the support of community health. For more information, go to: kp.org/share.

Contact: Mark Camps
510-267-7653

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SOURCE Kaiser Permanente