2007-05-23 21:02:41 -

SILVER SPRING, Md., May 23 /PRNewswire/ -- 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.

KEY POINTS ABOUT NLC GRANT Key Point Supporting Points Kaiser Permanente and the Coalition of Kaiser · The grant is Permanente Unions will jointly fund the for a total of Kaiser Permanente Healthcare Institute at the $450,000 over three National Labor College for the next three years. Kaiser years. Permanente and the Labor Management Partnership Trust Fund will each pay $75,000 each year. · The grant will pay to develop a health care curriculum at the National Labor College, as well as to fund an annual conference of key health policy leaders. · The Labor Management Partnership Trust Fund is funded by union members at Kaiser, via hourly contributions, and by the Kaiser Permanente Foundation Health Plan. Kaiser Permanente is the industry leader in · More than quality, union-provided health care. 90,000 Kaiser Permanente employees belong to one of 29 local unions in the Coalition of Kaiser Permanente Unions. · The unions in the Labor Management Partnership participate in every level of operations of Kaiser Permanente. · The unions in the Coalition also work with Kaiser Permanente staff to grow Kaiser's membership within organized labor. The National Labor College educates current and · The National labor leaders future Labor College is organized labor's accredited higher education institution, providing information and courses on labor negotiations and public policy. · Health care is the number one issue in labor-management negotiations. · The Kaiser Permanente Health Institute at the National Labor College will provide education for labor leaders on this critical issue. The funding of the National Labor College and the · The $450,000 Kaiser Permanente Health Institute to fund union is an investment in Kaiser Permanente's and leader education is an organized labor's future. acknowledgement that Kaiser Permanente and its unions are dependent upon one another for future growth. · Educating negotiators on Kaiser Permanente's health model will ensure that Kaiser Permanente becomes a part of labor-management negotiations across the country now and into the future. The grant to fund the Kaiser Permanente Health · The Kaiser Institute is a continuation of the Permanente Labor innovative ways in which Kaiser Permanente does Management Partnership business and delivers health care. is ground- breaking in its depth and breadth, both in the way care is delivered and business is conducted. · A jointly funded grant-by Kaiser Permanente and its workers-is a continuation of that innovation.

Source: Kaiser Permanente