Press Releases: Georgia
June 9, 2011
Kaiser Permanente Georgia First in the Southeast to Earn NCQA Multicultural Health Care Distinction
Distinction highlights efforts to meet the needs of diverse populations and reduce health care disparities
ATLANTA — Kaiser Permanente Georgia is the first in the Southeast to earn the Multicultural Health Care Distinction through the National Committee for Quality Assurance. The distinction is given to health care plans that meet rigorous standards in the following areas:
- Race/Ethnicity and Language Data Collection
- Access and Availability of Language Services
- Practitioner Network Cultural Responsiveness
- Culturally and Linguistically Appropriate Service Programs
- Reducing Health Care Disparities
“Cultural competency is crucial to providing high quality care,” said NCQA President Margaret E. O’ Kane. “I commend Kaiser Permanente of Georgia for achieving Multicultural Health Care Distinction. They are leaders in closing the ethnic and racial disparities gap, and NCQA commends them for their dedication.”
Kaiser Permanente Georgia was one of only seven health plans in the country to initially pursue the distinction, which evaluates organizations using a set of evidence-based requirements modeled after Federal Office of Minority Health standards. The distinction is for Kaiser Permanente Georgia’s Commercial HMO and Medicare HMO plans.
“This distinction recognizes Kaiser Permanente of Georgia’s commitment to provide high-quality care to all members — regardless of culture, ethnicity or language,” said Rob Schreiner, MD, executive medical director for Kaiser Permanente Georgia. “From offering interpreters for 150 languages to training our health care practitioners to be more culturally aware, we are reducing health care disparities in the communities we serve.”
About NCQA
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’s Healthcare Effectiveness Data and Information Set (HEDIS®) is the most widely used performance measurement tool in health care. NCQA is committed to providing health care quality information for consumers, purchasers, health care providers and researchers. For more information please visit www.ncqa.org.
About Kaiser Permanente of Georgia
Kaiser Permanente is Georgia’s largest not-for-profit health plan. Its mission is to provide high quality, affordable health care services to improve the health of its members and the communities it serves. Kaiser Permanente serves more than 240,000 members in a 28-county service area in metro Atlanta with care focused on their total health and guided by their personal physicians, specialists, and team of heath care providers. Expert and caring medical teams are supported by industry-leading technology and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the art delivery, and world-class chronic disease management. Nationally, Kaiser Permanente is recognized as one of America’s leading health care providers, serving more than 8.8 million members in nine states and the District of Columbia. For more information, visit www.kp.org.
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 8.8 million members in nine 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. For more information, go to: www.kp.org/newscenter
