Press Releases: Colorado
May 19, 2010
Kaiser Permanente Announces Major Colorado Expansion Plans
As membership reaches half-a-million, Kaiser Permanente plans to bring five new medical offices and more jobs to region
DENVER — Kaiser Permanente Colorado will significantly expand its footprint in Colorado, opening a state-of-the-art specialty medical office in South-metro Denver near the intersection of I-25 and Lincoln Avenue in Douglas County. This large-scale specialty center is one of five new medical offices planned for the state in the next three years.
The expansion, one of the largest in Kaiser Permanente’s 40-year history in Colorado, comes on the heels of significant membership growth during the recession. Since 2007, membership grew 7.2 percent to more than 519,000, making Kaiser Permanente the fourth largest health plan in the state. A key driver of growth is Kaiser Permanente’s new commercial presence in Pueblo and Fremont counties, as well as a unique expansion in Colorado Springs where the health plan opened a first-of-its kind medical office catering to its Medicare members. In addition, a new medical office which opened in Parker last year has been met by the community with great success.
The current medical office expansion plan is intended to serve patients and employers with top-notch care, closer to home.
“As a nonprofit health plan, we invest in services for our members and during times of growth this means establishing medical offices close to home to better meet our patients’ and employer’s health care needs,” said Donna Lynne, DrPH, president, Kaiser Permanente Colorado. “Our goal is to decrease drive time and make it easier and more convenient for thousands of our members to access primary care, specialty care, pharmacy, laboratory and other high quality medical services in their community.”
Anticipated Job Growth and Economic Benefits
“At a time when many companies are announcing job cuts, Kaiser Permanente, one of the state’s largest health plan providers, remains committed to Colorado and is adding over a 100 jobs to the local economy. This announcement is great news for the health and wellness of our community and the health of our economy,” said Tom Clark, executive vice president of the Metro Denver Economic Development Corporation.
Kaiser Permanente Colorado, ranked by Colorado Parent Magazine as one of the top places to work, currently employs more than 6,000 staff and physicians, making it one of the largest health care employers in the region. In addition to the positive economic impact on local neighborhoods, it’s also anticipated the expansion will boost job growth. While specific estimates are still underway, Kaiser Permanente’s new medical offices may provide as many as 100 new jobs over the next three to five years.
Creating Patient-Centered Medical Homes
Currently, 200,000-plus Kaiser Permanente Colorado members are using electronic tools to virtually visit their doctors, check test results, and manage their health online. Despite this large-scale adoption of web tools, bricks and mortar medical offices remain a key driver of top-notch quality. This is evidenced by the 16 Kaiser Permanente Colorado medical offices and nearly 300 individual physicians who recently earned the top-level Patient-Centered Medical Home designation from the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA).
There are several features of Kaiser Permanente’s state-of-the-art infrastructure that provide the foundation for the NCQA’s elite certification, including:
- access to a team of professionals, including doctors, nurses and care managers, all under one roof;
- systems to support electronic prescribing, test tracking and referral tracking; and
- sophisticated electronic medical records in the exam room, pharmacy and laboratory to promote advanced e-communications.
The five new medical offices will be constructed with a focus on continuing to create a patient-centered environment that promotes best-in-market quality.
Medical Office Snapshots
By 2014, Kaiser Permanente plans to open five new medical offices in the following locations:
- Evergreen: The facility will be approximately 5,000 square feet and focus on primary care services including Internal Medicine and Family Practice. Expected to open in Fall of 2010.
- Castle Rock: Primary care focus. Kaiser Permanente is currently evaluating sites to lease or purchase in the area. Anticipated to open in early 2011.
- Brighton: Primary care focus, but detailed planning still underway. Expected to open by the second half of 2011.
- I-25 and Lincoln: Located on Park Meadows Drive, just west of the RTD Lincoln Station light rail, the South Multi-Specialty Center will provide Kaiser Permanente members with greater access and convenience to a variety of specialty medical services including Gastroenterology, Orthopedics, out-patient surgery, Pharmacy, Laboratory, Radiology and other services. Anticipated open date is 2013.
- Larkridge: Kaiser Permanente owns 7.2 acres of land near the intersection of I-25 and 160th. There are plans to build a medical office building in the next few years. Anticipated open date is 2012/2013.
About Kaiser Permanente Colorado
Kaiser Permanente Colorado is the state’s largest nonprofit health plan, proudly working to improve the lives and health of Denver, Boulder, and Southern Colorado area residents for 40 years. Kaiser Permanente Colorado provides comprehensive health care services to more than 500,000 members through 20 medical offices and a network of affiliated hospitals and physicians. The health plan was recently named “Highest in Member Satisfaction” among Commercial Health Plans by J.D. Power and Associates for the third straight year. Kaiser Permanente was also named the top-ranked commercial health plan and Medicare plan in Colorado by US News & World Report/NCQA. In 2008, Kaiser Permanente proudly directed more than $82 million to community benefit programs to improve the health of all Coloradans. For more Kaiser Permanente news, visit kp.org/newscenter or follow us on twitter @kpcolorado or facebook.com/kpcolorado.