So cal kaiser insurance
- Thread starter msrhoda
- Start date
Yes, we've been with them for all but 2 of the last 28 years. We have always had excellent care there. I don't think we've had anything terribly exotic or complex to treat though.
The thing people who don't like them complain about is that you can only see doctors they employ. There's no such thing as "out of network", so you can't get a referral to an endocrinologist and then go see the independent one your neighbor recommends. If you have a thyroid problem, you'll be seeing someone at a Kaiser office. The good thing is that all your medical records are available to all your care providers, so your primary care doc will know everything that the endocrinologist does to treat you, and the pharmacies will know about all your prescriptions.
The thing people who don't like them complain about is that you can only see doctors they employ. There's no such thing as "out of network", so you can't get a referral to an endocrinologist and then go see the independent one your neighbor recommends. If you have a thyroid problem, you'll be seeing someone at a Kaiser office. The good thing is that all your medical records are available to all your care providers, so your primary care doc will know everything that the endocrinologist does to treat you, and the pharmacies will know about all your prescriptions.
Here's a thread on Kaiser from last year you may find helpful http://www.early-retirement.org/forums/f38/anyone-use-kaiser-in-retirement-74213.html
One important difference is Kaiser offers an HMO while BCBS is a PPO plan. Typically, with the HMO your primary care physician must authorize all non-emergency specialist care. while the PPO may have a bigger network and doesn't require pre-authorization.
Past posts from members here using Kaiser have been positive.
One important difference is Kaiser offers an HMO while BCBS is a PPO plan. Typically, with the HMO your primary care physician must authorize all non-emergency specialist care. while the PPO may have a bigger network and doesn't require pre-authorization.
Past posts from members here using Kaiser have been positive.
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