Kaiser Permanente Colorado for Individuals and Families switched over to a 21-page application on July 17th. They’ll honor the old application for 1 month, until August 18th.

The old application was nine pages and basically the same as Kaiser Permanente’s old California application. The new application for Colorado is modeled after the new California application that Kaiser Permanente California switched to in October of 2008.

Customers Have a Love/Hate Relationship with the New Application
Many customers are frustrated that the application has become so much longer. The old application had 13 medical history questions; the new application has 29. The size of the application has more than doubled in size. Customers complain that the application is tedious and difficult to get through. On the positive side, customers have the hope that the new application will speed up processing time.

Underwriters Love It
Many underwriters felt like the old application just didn’t give them enough information to approve or deny applications. As a result, they often had to do a lot more research, checking medical records, calling applicants, etc. This increased their work load and slowed down the processing of the applications so customers had to wait longer. This more lengthy application will help underwriters be more successful at approving and denying applications accurately and according to the underwriting guidelines.

Posted: July 27th, 2009 under Colorado Individual.
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Kaiser Permanente is proud to announce the addition of monthly T’ai Chi Chuan classes at the Piedmont Park Green Market. The classes are being offered in addition to the monthly healthy cooking demonstrations that Kaiser Permanente currently hosts at the weekly market.

T’ai Chi Chuan is an ancient exercise which embodies China’s most profound concepts and principles of health and movement. Based on softness and awareness (rather than force and resistance) T’ai Chi has been recognized for thousands of years as both a method of self-cultivation and an unexcelled form of self defense. The classes will be held once a month from 9-10 a.m. in the community center. David Dunn, who has studied T’ai Chi Chuan, Qigong, and Chinese martial arts since 1979, will lead the classes.

The classes are on a first come first serve basis.

Class Schedule

• Saturday, July 11

• Saturday, August 1

• Saturday, September 12

• Saturday, October 3

• Saturday, November 7

• Saturday, December 5

Green Market is held every Saturday morning from now until Dec. 12, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and is located along the 12th Street entrance to Piedmont Park.

Posted: July 13th, 2009 under Georgia.
Comments: none

Kaiser Permanente is proud to announce the addition of monthly T’ai Chi Chuan classes at the Piedmont Park Green Market. The classes are being offered in addition to the monthly healthy cooking demonstrations that Kaiser Permanente currently hosts at the weekly market.

T’ai Chi Chuan is an ancient exercise which embodies China’s most profound concepts and principles of health and movement. Based on softness and awareness (rather than force and resistance) T’ai Chi has been recognized for thousands of years as both a method of self-cultivation and an unexcelled form of self defense. The classes will be held once a month from 9-10 a.m. in the community center. David Dunn, who has studied T’ai Chi Chuan, Qigong, and Chinese martial arts since 1979, will lead the classes.

The classes are on a first come first serve basis.

Class Schedule

• Saturday, July 11

• Saturday, August 1

• Saturday, September 12

• Saturday, October 3

• Saturday, November 7

• Saturday, December 5

Green Market is held every Saturday morning from now until Dec. 12, from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. and is located along the 12th Street entrance to Piedmont Park.

Posted: July 13th, 2009 under Georgia.
Comments: none

Kaiser Permanente Georgia competes with Coventry and Blue Cross/Blue Shield in the Atlanta, GA area. Often, Kaiser has the lower rates. However, beyond offering more affordable health insurance plans, the Kaiser Georgia medical plans have certain benefit advantages which include maternity coverage with no waiting period, labs and X-rays included with a copayment, mental health included (not as a separate rider) and preventative screenings at no cost.

More Affordable Georgia Health Insurance
Below are some of the Kaiser Permanente plans along with age groups where Kaiser Permanente has the price advantage over comparable Coventry and Blue Cross/Blue Shield Plans:

1. HMO Plan 1000
You will find that the Kaiser Permanente HMO Plan 1000 is more affordable than comparable plans from our competitors for the following gender/age bands:
Male 40 – 44                       Female 50-54
Male 45-49                          Female 55-59
Male 50-54                          Female 60-64
Male 55-59
Male 60 -64

2. HMO Plan 2000
The Kaiser Permanente HMO Plan 2000 offers more affordable rates than the competitors on the following gender/age bands:
Male 45-49                        Female 50-54
Male 50-54                        Female 55-59
Male 55-59                        Female 60-64
Male 60-64

3. HMO Plan 5000
The Kaiser HMO Plan 5000 has lower prices for the following gender/age bands:
Male 50-54
Male 55-59
Male 60-64

Posted: July 7th, 2009 under Georgia Individual.
Comments: none

For most of us, health insurance is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to the insurance protection we are looking for. We have loved ones to protect, homes to insurance and businesses to cover. We need auto insurance, homeowner’s insurance, life insurance, business insurance etc. to make sure that our loved ones, our business and our belongings are covered. If you’re in Santa Rosa, California or the Sonoma County area, we recommend checking in with the Santa Rosa Insurance Pros at Bill Hansen Insurance.

Bill Hansen Insurance offers affordable rates from several different carriers including Farmer’s Insurance Group, Anthem-Blue Cross, Foremost Insurance Group, and Bristol West Insurance Group. By including multiple carriers, the Insurance Pros are able to offer highly competitive rates and cover you, your family, your business and your property for all your insurance needs.

Bill Hansen Insurance Agency has been operating locally in the Santa Rosa area for over twenty years. They are located at 5000 Montgomery Drive in Santa Rosa, California near the corner of Montgomery Drive and Summerfield Road and near Howarth Park. Their staff of highly qualified insurance agents can help you with all your insurance related issues and questions. Give them a call at 707-526-0448 to speak with a licensed insurance agent who can get you quotes, help you find the right coverage and assist you with enrollment. They also have an insurance agent named Liz who speaks Spanish. You’ll find that anyone you talk to at this insurance agency is very friendly and helpful.

Posted: July 6th, 2009 under California.
Comments: none

With so many people losing their jobs and their healthcare, I am reminded of my experience when I lost my job and how Kaiser’s different plans helped my family. 

For over 40 years, I’ve always had good health insurance through one employer or another. I didn’t know how great it was to have coverage until I almost lost it. For $10 per incident, I delivered two of my children, my son had two brain surgeries and MRI’s, and my daughter had two foot surgeries. Thank Heaven, if it had to happen, we had excellent coverage, and affordable rates. Because I worked for a large group, the rates were amazingly low. I had the best of both worlds, excellent benefits and low premiums. 

When my employer closed its doors, I didn’t have another job to go to, but at least, I was able to rollover my family to a COBRA plan. We were able to keep the excellent benefits, and surprisingly, the premium was still reasonable. Usually, being on COBRA means goodbye to low premiums. However, because I was coming off of a large group plan, my rates were still lower than if I had enrolled on a private plan. Due to a pre-existing condition, my son would not have qualified for a private plan anyway. My family stayed on COBRA, until I learned about Kaiser’s Steps Program.  

The Steps Program is designed for people who need a financial break, which I definitely needed, after not having worked consistently for a year. Steps was the perfect fit. The benefits were good and the price was amazingly cheap. Since it wasn’t subject to medical underwriting, my son couldn’t be denied.  

Eventually, I found a wonderful job that offered health insurance. I became ineligible for Steps when my employer offered the group plan. I wasn’t sure if I should switch my children onto the group plan. Since the small group rates for dependents were higher than Steps, and since my children would not have qualified to be my dependents (because they were not full-time students), the decision was easy.  

I decided to put my family on three different Kaiser Plans. I’m on a group plan, my son with the pre-existing condition is on the Steps Program, and my healthy daughter is on an Individual Health Insurance Plan. It has been a win-win-win situation. We’ve been able to stay with our personal doctors, and more importantly, we are each on a plan that best fits our budget, and our unique service needs.   

When I first got laid off, I wouldn’t have imagined that I could have gotten a better job and healthcare on top of it. Now, I work for a health insurance broker that sells Kaiser health insurance. That’s

Providence. When I receive calls from people who are losing their jobs and/or healthcare, I’m reminded of my own experience, and am encouraged by the possibilities.

Posted: July 1st, 2009 under Kaiser Permanente.
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