CARES Act funding and Kaiser Permanente

Jul. 17, 2020

As a large integrated health care system with 12.4 million members and hundreds of medical facilities, Kaiser Permanente received and was eligible to retain distribution of CARES Act relief funds totaling more than $500 million. We have declined all of it except for $11.8 million for Maui Health System, a nonprofit subsidiary of Kaiser Foundation Hospitals.

Because Kaiser Permanente relies on prepayment rather than fee-for-service reimbursement, our model has allowed us to maintain revenue flow through the first wave of this pandemic. We also took other actions to manage expenses that have allowed us to withstand the financial hardship posed by the pandemic to date.

Like others, we are working hard to adjust to the immediate disruptions as well as address the long-term economic challenges that will affect our organization and our patients, customers, and communities we serve. Our focus is on redesigning our organization and our cost structure through initiatives like making virtual visits an even more convenient and integrated part of care delivery.


All carrier plans offered and underwritten by Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Washington or Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Washington Options, Inc. Self-funded health benefits are insured by an employer, union, or Plan sponsor. Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Washington and Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Washington, Inc., provide certain administrative services for the self-funded Plan and are not an insurer of the Plan or financially liable for health care benefits under the Plan.

© 2023 Kaiser Foundation Health Plan of Washington