SACRAMENTO, Sept. 27 (UPI) -- California has published a report card on the state's nine largest HMOs, and two Kaiser plans lead the pack.
The Healthcare Quality Report Card evaluates the HMOs based on quality of care and also includes a quick reference tool indicating how well each addresses key medical conditions like cancer, diabetes, heart disease and asthma.
With a star rating indicating "excellent" to "poor," Kaiser Permanente-Northern California and Kaiser Permanente-Southern California led the rankings, each scoring six out of eight possible stars.
Health Net of California, PacifiCare of California and Western Health Advantage had five stars each.
Users can also click on different links to obtain more healthcare information comparing California HMOs to national benchmarks and quality reports for Medicare, Medi-Cal -- the state's insurance for the poor -- and for hospitals.
In addition, the report card has added new measures on how quickly HMO phones are answered, whether patients with low back pain receive unnecessary care and if heart-attack patients continue to receive necessary medication.
The nine companies included in the report card represent 95 percent of California's commercial HMO enrollees.
