October 26, 2021

Medicare Advantage plan earns top ranking

U.S. News & World Report lists Kaiser Permanente in Hawaii as a 2022 “Best Insurance Company for Medicare Advantage Plans.”

PRESS RELEASE
Contact: Laura M. Lott
laura.m.lott@kp.org
808-343-2406 (mobile)

HONOLULU — Kaiser Permanente in Hawaii, the largest health maintenance organization in the state, has been named a “Best Insurance Company for Medicare Advantage Plans 2022” by U.S. News & World Report. This accolade follows Kaiser Permanente’s 5-out-of-5 star rating from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services for its Medicare health plan, the only Medicare health plan in Hawaii to earn this prestigious rating. 

For the fifth straight year, Kaiser Permanente in Hawaii received 5 out of 5 stars from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services for its Medicare health plan. Kaiser Permanente is the only Medicare health plan in Hawaii — and one of just 21 in the nation — to receive 5 out of 5 stars this year from CMS, a federal agency and division of the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services. To learn more about Kaiser Permanente’s highly rated Medicare health plans and historical star ratings by region, visit kp.org/medicarestars.

The Medicare Star Quality Ratings for 2022 are based on plans’ performance in measures related to staying healthy, managing chronic conditions, patient experience, customer service, and pharmacy services. Once a year, CMS assigns a rating to individual Medicare health plans ranging from 1 (lowest) to 5 (highest) stars to provide beneficiaries with a way to compare Medicare health plans each year.

“Our fully integrated health care model allows us to serve the often complex health needs of seniors in ways that are more convenient for them and their families,” said John Yang, MD, president and medical director for Hawaii Permanente Medical Group. “This recognition from U.S. News & World Report is a reflection of our team’s commitment to providing our ‘kupuna’ members with the high-quality care they deserve,” he added, using the Hawaiian word for elders.

U.S. News used data from the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services’ Medicare Compare tool, including its star rating of each Medicare Advantage plan offered in 2022. CMS scores each Medicare plan from 1 to 5 stars, in half-star intervals, in 5 categories. For an insurance company to be eligible for the list of U.S. News & World Report’s Best Insurance Companies for Medicare Advantage, all Medicare Advantage plans offered by the insurance company in that state had to be rated overall with at least 3 out of 5 stars by CMS. U.S. News then averaged the CMS star ratings for each of the eligible companies’ plans and those companies with an average overall rating of 4.5 or more stars earned recognition as a “Best Insurance Company for Medicare Advantage.” To learn more about U.S. News’ methodology, visit health.usnews.com.

Medicare health plans that earn 5 out of 5 stars can participate in a 5-star special enrollment period and continue to enroll new individual Medicare members outside the annual enrollment window, from December 8 through November 30 of the following year. Beneficiaries who want to change from their current Medicare plan to a 5-star plan may switch once per plan year during the 5-star special enrollment period. 

About Kaiser Permanente 

Kaiser Permanente is committed to helping shape the future of health care. We are recognized as one of America’s leading health care providers and not-for-profit health plans. Founded in 1945, Kaiser Permanente has a mission to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We currently serve approximately 12.5 million members in 8 states and the District of Columbia. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal Permanente Medical Group physicians, specialists, and team of caregivers. Our expert and caring medical teams are empowered and supported by industry-leading technology advances and tools for health promotion, disease prevention, state-of-the-art care delivery, and world-class chronic disease management. Kaiser Permanente is dedicated to care innovations, clinical research, health education, and the support of community health.