I never had any issues with KP. They seemed great and the staffs are very polite and nice.

I have had a chronic cough for about 6 weeks. I saw a doctor at KP about a month ago and she seemed to think it was nothing more than a cold. A couple of days ago, I started developing chest pains, and then today at work, I became feverish and extremely short of breath. This was all especially alarming since I got back from volunteering in Africa about a month ago and I was with a population where pneumonia prevalence was quite high.

I immediately called KP to make a second appointment. As I work in Georgetown, I asked to go to a Kaiser center in downtown D.C. The only appointment they could find in the area was a 4 PM appointment in northern Silver Spring. While that is only about 10 miles away, that can take an hour during rush hour, so I left early to plan for traffic. It took me about 90 minutes to get there, and I continued calling Internal Medicine to let them know of my situation and that I was trying to get up there as fast as possible. I called again at 4:25, and a receptionist told me that they closed their doors at 4:30. I was still about 5-10 minutes away.

Needless to say, I got turned away. I know KP has no control over traffic and road construction, but given the nature of my symptoms, I feel they should have referred me to a clinic that was close to where I was. I am now waiting for a call from a nurse to be referred to urgent care, and I realize that since KP has such limited choices, I have to either sit here and wait for clearance to go to urgent care or I have to pay out of pocket at the emergency room.

If you do happen to receive services at a KP center, be prepared to feel like you're in an assembly line. The doctors I have had have been pleasant, but you spend most of your time getting shepherded in and out of lines. I would never recommend KP coverage to anyone- pay a little more and go with a PPO. You'll be more likely to receive the care and attention you deserve.

I have had Kaiser for four years now and it is absolutely the best health insurance I have ever had. The cost is phenomenally low and the co-pays are very reasonable. Two years ago, Business Week rated Kaiser as the most efficient health insurer/provider in the US. If your employer offers it as one of your provider options don't hesitate to sign up.

The ER is great. They have to be. You're inside their waiting room and need to be seen. But as soon as you get to urgent care...RUN!

Not only is urgent care mean, sloppy, and rude but they are getting paid for it.

When I went into the ER for heart palpitations, rapid heart rate, numbness in my left hand and legs, chest pain that still lasted for 6 hours, I was seen immediately.
Sadly it was a weekend afternoon so they shipped me to the Urgent Care unit to be seen sooner. Here I was sent to a doctor who told me there was nothing wrong with me and told me I had too much stress in my life. (I know for a fact I don't have stress--with school being out and only working 12 hours a week--yeah a week).

Moral of the story is that they booted me out, told me to go to walmart to get antacid and meditate more. Kaiser thrives on healthy people, and boots you out when you are sick. Kaiser=bad.

--going to a new doctor (thank God I have double coverage)

My experience:

Oh, you have a severe conjunctivitis of an unknown origin in both eyes? Why don't you take claritin? Why can't I prescribe anything? Oh, because there are no MDs at the Urgent Care. Referral? Sure....you can have that taken care of in exactly one week. Why can't you see an eye doctor tomorrow? That's just not how Kaiser works.

Thanks, I'll pay out of pocket for some real care. Hopefully nothing more serious happens to me while on Kaiser.

I would not recommend Kaiser to anyone. Look at there history of lawsuits and false advertising. Your not in the hands of the doctors, yet how much money you have and what company you work for. Also if you are some how no longer a member and try to get your meds the prices are FAR higher then anyone else. Look on your old ones to see how much they pay for them. And how much they charge you. I was told in person by there employee they do this to keep non members away. So pretty much denying service witch high prices. I was being charge 26.00 as a non member for months then it jumped to 138.00. This would be known as Price gouging and or profiteering.
When Kaiser was started I dont think he would of wanted what this nonprofit is today

The only problem I have with Kaiser Permanente is having inconsistent care with same provider(s). Your care gets juggled around (passed on from one physician or nurse practitioner to another) simply because of their lack of schedule or time. I find myself competing with other patients to be seen by same doctor or practitioner, juggling my work schedule around the schedule of my provider and their available time and day slots just to get consistent care. In my prenatal experience, I've only seen my Ob-Gyn physician once or twice throughout the 9 months of checkups.

I have Kaiser insurance through my employer and since January of this year (2008) I have been misdiagnosed 6 TIMES. I have been refused treatment and was referred to an ENT Specialist. Needless to say, when I went to my appointment with the ENT Specialist I never saw a doctor, but instead was seen by a PAC who told me that the dizziness I went to see them about would go away if I did a sinus rinse twice a day for 2 months. My dizziness hasn't gone away and everytime I try to mention what could be causing it to my doctor based on things I read she waves her hand at me and says it's probably caused by vertigo but never runs any type of bloodwork or other tests to determine what would be causing the vertigo. I find Kaiser doctors to be very inept and unqualified to be practicing medicine. I decided to pay out of pocket to seek a second opinion from a real doctor and found out that a lot of what I have been experiencing is due to a thyroid condition that needed to be referred to an endocrinologist. In my opinion, the doctors who work for Kaiser work for them because they either passed their medical boards by the skin of their teeth or they attended medical schools that you can't help but question if the school really exists or if their "degree" is a mail order degree. Frankly, you're better off saving your money and just dying than going with Kaiser and their "doctors," because regardless, your result will be the same.

I would have given negatives on the rating scale if they were available.

I am new member to Kaiser Permanente and I did not know that in order to get information on a prescription you had to request it. I left my prescription over the weekend of 12/7 because Kaiser Permanente did not carry the brand I needed. When I received the medication there was no information about the new medication. I was confused because there were 3 medications in the bag when I had given them 2 prescirptions. Tuesday morning I looked up the medication on the internet and learned that two of the medications were for hypertension, one a ACE inhibitor and the other a calcium channel blocker. I was given the two medication because my prescription had no generic and was a combination of 2 effective blood pressure medication in 1 capsule. When I call the pharmacy to inquire why I was not given any information about the new medication, I was told I had to request the information because the person filing the prescription does not know that it is a new prescription.

This is the first time I have received medication from a pharmacy and not received any information about the prescription, especially a precription I have never taken before. The young lady that I spoke with rushed me off the phone, like she did not think my concern was important and I should have requested the information.

I think the policy of Kaiser Permanente should be that all prescription include information about the medication and its side effects, especially if it is a different medication than what was prescribed by the doctor. It is hard for me to believe that no one has mentioned this before, because this is very important informtion that all patients need.

I have read some bad things on Kasier Permanente online, but my experience has been great. Kaiser has really set itself apart from the other health insurance companies. I sleep better at night knowing I'm protected by Kaiser Permanente and highly reccomend it.