Kaiser Permanente Recognized Among DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity®

OAKLAND, Calif., April 24, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Kaiser Permanente has been ranked No. 3 on the 2013 DiversityInc Top 50 Companies for Diversity® list and was the only health care organization to make the top 10.

The annual survey, in its 14^th year, measures and ranks an organization's performance in diversity management based on four key areas: CEO commitment, human capital, corporate and organizational communications, and supplier diversity.

A total of 893 companies representing a host of industries, an increase of 52 percent from last year, vied for the honor this year, underscoring the increasing emphasis on diversity management among progressive companies. Kaiser Permanente has maintained its leadership in the top 10 since 2009.

"We are honored to receive recognition from DiversityInc and believe it is important to celebrate our achievements in the continuous pursuit of excellence; however, the genuine value of benchmarking is discovering additional opportunities to improve our performance," said Ronald Copeland, MD, FACS, chief diversity and inclusion officer at Kaiser Permanente. "Additionally, the ability to share best practices is another opportunity that participation provides for us. By raising the bar on ourselves and others, Kaiser Permanente is better equipped to serve our community, workforce, patients and members. Healthy communities and environment are critical to individual health and wellness. Creating them has always been central to our mission."

"As the Affordable Care Act becomes reality, the decades-long legacy of inclusion at Kaiser Permanente, both internally and externally, gives it a unique ability to reach members and patients in all demographics," said DiversityInc CEO Luke Visconti. "Both Chairman and CEO George Halvorson and Incoming Chairman and CEO Bernard Tyson are diversity champions in every sense. The appointment of Dr. Copeland, an experienced surgeon and physician executive, to lead diversity highlights the integration of diversity and inclusion to key organizational goals. Kaiser Permanente's numbers bear out its efforts – its board of directors has 50 percent and its top level has 20 percent more racial and ethnic diversity than the DiversityInc Top 50."

Kaiser Permanente also ranked:

• No. 1 in the DiversityInc Top 10 Companies for Latinos
• No. 3 in the DiversityInc Top 10 Companies for Blacks
• No. 3 in the DiversityInc Top 10 Companies for Asian Americans
• No. 4 in the DiversityInc Top 10 Companies for Executive Women
• No. 7 in the DiversityInc Top 10 Companies for People With Disabilities

DiversityInc announced its Top 50 Companies for Diversity on Tuesday, April 23, in New York City. Kaiser Permanente and its ranking will be featured in the June 2013 issue of DiversityInc Magazine.

For more information about the DiversityInc Top 50 and to view the full list, please visit www.diversityinc.com/top50.

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, our mission is to provide high-quality, affordable health care services and to improve the health of our members and the communities we serve. We serve over 9 million members in nine states and the District of Columbia. Care for members and patients is focused on their total health and guided by their personal 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. For more information, go to: kp.org/newscenter.

For more information:
Amy Wang: [email protected], 510-506-5569

SOURCE Kaiser Permanente