Kaiser Permanente and Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions Establish Kaiser Permanente Healthcare Institute at National Labor College

Silver Spring, MD—Oakland, CA, headquartered Kaiser Permanente, America’s largest integrated health plan, and the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions, are jointly donating $450,000 to the National Labor College (NLC) in Silver Spring, Maryland to fund the Kaiser Permanente Healthcare Institute, a program dedicated to educating labor leaders and union members on health care issues. It is thought to be the first such grant from a major health care provider to an institution serving the labor community.

Arthur M. Southam, MD, Kaiser Permanente Executive Vice President of Health Plan Operations, described the establishment of the Institute as historically fitting. “Kaiser Permanente has a long-standing commitment to providing coordinated, quality health care to workers and their families, a mission that has been sustained by our solid relationship with the labor community. The creation of the Kaiser Permanente Healthcare Institute in collaboration with the National Labor College will promote understanding of the challenges facing our current health care system and provide labor leaders and other students with the knowledge and skills for driving the effort to make affordable, quality health care available to every American.”

John August, Executive Director of the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions said, “In this time of health care reform debate, among the topics that get lost is the question of how care will be delivered. No organization knows more about delivering high-quality health care than Kaiser Permanente, and that knowledge will be a critical element in the education of National Labor College students for many, many years.”

Ten years ago, Kaiser Permanente entered into a unique labor-management partnership that now involves more than 120,000 union, management and physician employees. The partnership is credited with creating a workforce that is focused on enhancing quality of care and service, improving frontline performance and making Kaiser Permanente a better place to work. According to company and college spokespersons, the grant to the NLC grew out of discussions between leaders of the partnership.

The Kaiser Permanente Healthcare Institute at the NLC (KPHI/NLC) will include courses focusing on health care bargaining and issues affecting the health care industry in the global economy. College officials will make the courses available individually, but they are also considering plans to create a curriculum that can lead to a certificate in health care. In addition, the KPHI/NLC will sponsor conferences on key issues in health care drawing in expert speakers. The first is being planned for this October.

“Workers today face a complex and fast-paced health care industry, insurance options that frequently change with the market and a growing need to understand the health care industry when they sit at the bargaining table,” said Susan J. Schurman, President, the National Labor College. “Thanks to Kaiser’s support, we are delighted to be able to offer this important curriculum to our students.”

Kaiser Permanente is America's leading integrated health plan. Founded in 1945, it is a not-for-profit; group practice program headquartered in Oakland, Calif. Kaiser Permanente serves more than 8.7 million members in nine states and the District of Columbia. Today it encompasses the not-for-profit Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc., Kaiser Foundation Hospitals and their subsidiaries, and the for-profit Permanente Medical Groups. Nationwide, Kaiser Permanente includes approximately 156,000 technical, administrative and clerical employees and caregivers, and 13,000 physicians representing all specialties.

Kaiser Permanente’s unique Labor Management Partnership—the largest and most comprehensive partnership of its kind, was formed in 1997. Since then, the Labor Management Partnership has launched hundreds of initiatives, from workplace safety improvements to large-scale organizational change, achieving measurable improvement in patient and employee satisfaction, quality and service scores, financial results, and operational efficiency. For more information, visit http://www.lmpartnership.org

The National Labor College is the only accredited college in the world exclusively dedicated to educating union members, leaders, activists and staff. Originally founded by the AFL-CIO in 1969 as the George Meany Center for Labor Studies, the center became the NLC in 1997 offering upper level degree completion programs for union members seeking to finish their college education. The NLC offers a unique combination of fully online courses along with partially online program with a low-residence on-campus component that allow full-time workers with families maximum flexibility to schedule study time. The college is accredited by the Middle States Commission on Higher Education, an independent, regional accrediting body recognized by the U.S. Department of Education.