I had the same stigma about Kaiser from a long series of bad experiences in the 80’s and early 90’s. I have gone through several different health insurance organizations since then, mostly paid for by my employers, and I can honestly say that they weren’t much better, and in most cases were much worse. My wife and budget (kids are expensive!) convinced me to switch back about 3 years ago and we were pleasantly surprised by their service and the accessibility of our doctors. They have improved by leaps and bounds over the run down old outfit they used to be. Their facilities, at least locally, have been streamlined. Their doctors are all accessible online via e-mail or their web site. Most lab test results can be viewed online as well. The list of improvements is extensive, with most of them being attributed to their recent transition to a completely paperless record keeping system.

If your kid is going to reside less than a mile away from a Kaiser hospital or major clinic, I think he or she might want to reconsider giving them a shot.