Letters to the Editor: As workers hit the picket lines, a Kaiser member praises the care he’s received
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- As Kaiser workers strike for better pay, a longtime member praises the superior integrated care he’s received since joining in 2014.
- The member credits Kaiser’s team approach and shared medical records for timely, professional care at reasonable costs with minimal copays.
- He supports fair compensation for striking workers while acknowledging Kaiser’s need to manage rising healthcare costs.
To the editor: My wife and I (now both in our 80s) reluctantly joined Kaiser Permanente in 2014 (“Tens of thousands of Kaiser Permanente healthcare workers launch five-day strike,” Oct. 14). Our goal was to reduce medical costs in order to assist with the financing of our granddaughters’ college education. Having had PPO and concierge Medicare coverage for the rest of our adult lives before this, we were suspicious of the care we would receive at Kaiser.
We could not have been more wrong. The care we have received from every level of Kaiser personnel has been superior, from doctors to nurses to staff. The integrated care provided by Kaiser has been timely, professional and of the highest quality, all at a reasonable cost.
We hand the staff member a Kaiser card and we get care. There is rarely a copay, and if there is one, it is minimal. All the doctors have access to all of our medical history and medications. Integrated care means just that: There is a team approach with evaluation and monitoring that results in the highest standard of care.
Kaiser healthcare workers definitely deserve appropriate remuneration for the important jobs they do so well. Understandably, Kaiser is attempting to mitigate rising costs while still providing first-rate medical care. Both sides deserve respect from the other. Let’s hope the issues resulting in the current strike are resolved as quickly and fairly as possible.
Dave Sanderson, La Cañada Flintridge
