Kaiser Permanente Reports 10% Rise in Q3 Income, but ‘Cost Pressures’ Linger
Kaiser Permanente announced yesterday that its third quarter net income rose 10%, in line with its "financial objectives" for the year, the Wall Street Journal reports. Net income rose from $180 million a year ago to $198 million, while revenue increased 11% from $4.4 billion to $4.9 billion (Wall Street Journal, 11/1). Dale Crandall, president of Kaiser Foundation Health Plan and Hospitals, said he was "reasonably pleased" with the gains. He added, "[W]e still face serious cost pressures, particularly for hospitalization services and pharmacy," as well as concerns over the upcoming flu season and a delay in receiving the influenza vaccine (Colliver, San Francisco Chronicle, 11/1). Kaiser announced in August that it will boost health insurance premium rates by more than 10% in 2002, following a five-year trend by the company of double-digit increases (California Healthline, 8/6). The Chronicle reports that Kaiser also has said that 2002 rates for its small business plans in California will rise 18% to 20% (San Francisco Chronicle, 11/1).
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