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Group Health Overview

Group Health provides medical coverage and care to more than 580,000 residents in Washington state and North Idaho through Group Health Cooperative or its subsidiaries, Group Health Options, Inc. and KPS Health Plans. Nearly two-thirds of members receive care in Group Health-operated medical facilities.

Also see: Fast Facts About Group Health

Group Health includes Group Health Cooperative (1947) and its research arm — the Group Health Research Institute (1983; formerly the Center for Health Studies), Group Health Options, Inc. (1990), Group Health Foundation (1983), and Group Health Permanente medical group (1997) — with whom Group Health Cooperative has an exclusive contract. These organizations and their staff members share a common purpose to transform health care, working together to improve the care and well-being of members, patients, and communities. In October 2005, Group Health Cooperative also acquired KPS Health Plans, a health care service contractor in northwest Washington.

Group Health Cooperative

Group Health Cooperative began in 1947 as a community coalition dedicated to making quality health care available and affordable. Today it is one of the few health care organizations in the country governed by consumers. Its 11-member Board of Trustees — all health-plan members elected by other members — work closely with management and medical staff to ensure that the organization's policies and direction put the needs of patients first.

Also see: History of the Cooperative

Group Health Cooperative, together with its subsidiary Group Health Options, Inc., operates in all or parts of 20 counties in Washington and two counties in North Idaho. In Washington, Group Health Cooperative offers coordinated-care plans for both groups and individuals; Clear Care®, our Medicare Advantage plans; and plans for residents who qualify for Healthy Options (Medicaid), Basic Health, and the State Children's Health Insurance Plan (SCHIP).

Care is provided by Group Health Permanente doctors and other clinicians at Group Health-operated medical facilities. In service areas where Group Health doesn't own facilities and for plans offering more choice, a network of nearly 9,000 community clinicians and 41 hospitals meets member health care needs.

Group Health Options, Inc.

Group Health Options, Inc., was incorporated in 1990 as a wholly owned subsidiary of Group Health Cooperative. It offers a variety of health plans in Washington and Idaho that provide choice and flexibility to meet the needs of large and small employers. These range from a defined physician-network plan to point-of-service plans in which members can get care from outside the network for higher out-of-pocket costs.

KPS Health Plans

Group Health Cooperative acquired KPS, a 62-year-old nonprofit health carrier based in Bremerton, Wash., in October 2005. KPS maintains a separate corporate identity.

Group Health Permanente

Physicians have played a key role in Group Health Cooperative's history and continue to oversee every aspect of clinical care and quality. Their commitment to family medicine and prevention has shaped an approach to care at Group Health that focuses on the whole patient, not just on an illness or condition.

After more than 50 years as Group Health staff, our doctors formed Group Health Permanente (GHP), an independent professional corporation, in 1997. This multispecialty medical group — one of the largest in Washington state — is under exclusive contract to provide care in Group Health-operated facilities and works in partnership with Group Health Cooperative management.

Group Health Research Institute

Group Health Research Institute (GHRI; formerly the Center for Health Studies) conducts epidemiologic, health-services, and clinical research related to prevention, diagnosis, and treatment of major health problems. Funded primarily through government and private grants, GHRI is located in Seattle.

Since the center's founding, researchers have published more than 1,800 scientific journal articles — many of these collaborations with researchers from the University of Washington, Fred Hutchinson Cancer Research Center, and other institutions. GHRI has helped Group Health become a national leader in areas such as breast cancer screening, immunization, and chronic disease management.

Group Health Foundation

Group Health Foundation supports Group Health in providing the best care for its members and creating better health in our communities. The Foundation uses grantmaking, school outreach, fundraising, and evaluation consulting to promote childhood immunizations and children's access to health care, and to promote new and exciting care initiatives at Group Health.

The Partnership for Innovation, a collaboration between the Foundation, Group Health clinicians, and GHRI, will help realize Group Health's vision of delivering affordable excellence for its patients by pilot testing cost-effective approaches that have the potential to improve patient care. Funded by $1.5 million in donor contributions, those projects that prove successful will be implemented throughout Group Health.

Affiliates

Kaiser Permanente and Group Health affiliated in 1997. Each remains independent and separate but work together in areas such as marketing to regional and national customers, sharing best clinical practices, and full-service member reciprocity.