Image by Larry Johnson via Flickr
Mayor Michael Hancock joined Kaiser Permanente executives and employees recently to announce that Denver will get a healthy boost to its economy this fall as the health care provider opens a state-of-the-art Member Service Call Center in the Lowry neighborhood. Kaiser Permanente will hire approximately 140 employees for the new facility starting in September. Hundreds of additional jobs could be created in the next few years as the health plan expands in Colorado.
"We are thrilled to hear Kaiser Permanente is bringing new jobs to Denver," said Mayor Hancock. "This announcement is great news for our city, especially during these tough economic times when so many folks are out of work. This demonstrates Kaiser Permanente's commitment to serving and investing in the people of Colorado."
Kaiser Permanente Colorado's Member Service Call Center assists members with questions about benefits, health care coverage, billing and facility information. Starting this fall, the call center will take on an expanded role as it begins fielding calls from three other Kaiser Permanente regions in other states.
"We are delighted to have been selected by our national office for an expanded call center in Denver," said Donna Lynne, DrPH, president of Kaiser Permanente Colorado. "The new Lowry facility will provide enhanced customer service to Kaiser Permanente members and we're glad to be supporting the local economy with a healthy dose of new jobs."
With more than 6,000 staff in the Denver/Boulder service area, Kaiser Permanente is one of Colorado's largest private employers. Since 2009, the organization has experienced 24 percent job growth, adding 1,200 new jobs to the local economy, including more than 550 jobs in the City of Denver. Kaiser Permanente currently employs more than 2,200 people in Denver.
"Kaiser Permanente has provided high-quality, affordable health care to Coloradans for more than 40 years," said Bernard Tyson, president and chief operating officer of Kaiser Permanente. "As we continue to increase our membership in Colorado, we're building new medical offices so we can continue to offer top-notch care close to home. Our expansion plans will benefit the communities we serve, including right here in Denver."
The Member Service Call Center will move to its expanded facility in Denver's Lowry neighborhood in November. The new larger Lowry facility will become one of three Kaiser Permanente Call Center hubs serving members in California, Maryland and Colorado. Each center will be outfitted with new technology, enabling faster response times, more communication choices beyond the telephone such as text and instant messaging, and later, 24/7 availability of health plan service representatives.
Future Growth 2012-2015
As Kaiser Permanente continues to add new membership in Colorado, it's estimated that hundreds of additional jobs could be created in the Denver metro area in the next three to five years. The organization has recently opened new medical offices in Brighton, Castle Rock and Evergreen and has plans for future offices in Broomfield's Larkridge neighborhood in 2012.
In addition, this fall, Kaiser Permanente will break ground on a new specialty medical office center on Park Meadows Drive near the intersection of I-25 and Lincoln Avenue. The multi-specialty center will provide members with greater access and convenience to a variety of specialty services including gastroenterology, orthopedics, and out-patient surgery. The multi-specialty center is expected to open by the end of 2013.
Individuals interested in applying for a position with Kaiser Permanente may visit www.kp.org/jobs.
About Kaiser Permanente Colorado
Kaiser Permanente Colorado is the state's largest nonprofit health plan, proudly working to improve the lives and health of Denver, Boulder and southern Colorado area residents for more than 40 years. Kaiser Permanente Colorado provides comprehensive health care services to more than 533,000 members through 23 medical offices and a network of affiliated hospitals and physicians. The health plan was named "Highest in Member Satisfaction" among Commercial Health Plans by J.D. Power and Associates for the fourth straight year. Kaiser Permanente was also recognized by the National Committee for Quality Assurance (NCQA) as the top-ranked private health plan in Colorado , No. 9 in the nation and one of the top 5 Medicare plans in the U.S. for the second year in a row. In 2010, Kaiser Permanente proudly directed more than $90 million to community benefit programs to improve the health of all Coloradans. For more Kaiser Permanente news, visit kp.org/newscenter or follow us on twitter @kpcolorado or facebook.com/kpcolorado.
