National Business Group on Health Honors Kaiser Permanente with Best Employer for Healthy Lifestyles® Award

OAKLAND, Calif., May 22, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- For the third consecutive year, Kaiser Permanente has been recognized by the National Business Group on Health as a Best Employer for Healthy Lifestyles for its ongoing commitment and dedication to promoting a healthy workplace and encouraging employees and their families to pursue and maintain healthy lifestyles.

Kaiser Permanente has been awarded a Platinum award for its Healthy Workforce initiatives, marking the second year Kaiser Permanente has received NBGH's highest honor.

Kaiser Permanente is among 65 U.S. employers to receive the 2013 Best Employers for Healthy Lifestyles® award at the Leadership Summit sponsored by the National Business Group on Health's Institute on Innovation in Workforce Well-being.

"Kaiser Permanente's dedication to the health of its workforce is reflected in programs that make healthy eating and physical activity easy choices in the workplace," said Kathy Gerwig, Kaiser Permanente's vice president for Employee Safety, Health and Wellness and environmental stewardship officer. "Our success is due to the many people who commit to living a healthier lifestyle, who make taking care of themselves a priority, and who engage others in active lifestyles for the wellbeing of their entire teams. We are proud to be recognized for our initiatives that help build our organization's vision of total health into the everyday life of our employees."

Kaiser Permanente was acknowledged with its second Platinum award for its dynamic and innovative national Healthy Workforce programs, tools and resources, including Thrive Across America, KP Walk! and the Take and Give campaign to promote the total health assessment, an online health assessment that provides a customized action plan to help people make healthier lifestyle choices. Through its Healthy Workforce initiative, Kaiser Permanente supports the health and well-being of employees by promoting healthy lifestyles with a focus on healthy eating and physical activity — especially walking. In order to meet the goals set out by the Healthy Workforce Initiative, Kaiser Permanente employees have access to personal wellness coaches and mental health counselors.

Helen Darling, president and CEO of the National Business Group on Health, commented, "We are proud to honor Kaiser Permanente for its ongoing commitment to providing lifestyle improvement programs that encourage healthy lifestyles for their employees. Kaiser Permanente is among an elite group of organizations that are leading the way to promoting healthy workplaces and lifestyles. Kaiser Permanente and its management team should be proud of their commitment to their program and we congratulate them on receiving this award."

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 currently serve more than 9.1 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], 510-267-2872

SOURCE Kaiser Permanente