Gregory A. Adams Named Northern California Region President of Kaiser Foundation Health Plan and Hospitals

OAKLAND, Calif., April 1, 2008 /PRNewswire/ -- Gregory A. Adams has been named president of the Northern California Region for Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc., and Kaiser Foundation Hospitals, effective April 1, announced Bernard J. Tyson, executive vice president of Kaiser Permanente Hospital and Health Plan Operations. Adams succeeds Mary Ann Thode, who is transitioning out as president of Northern California but will continue to serve as national senior vice president for Kaiser Permanente's Office of the Labor Management Partnership until her retirement.

Adams has more than 25 years of experience as a senior health care executive and consultant, and he has been with Kaiser Permanente since 1999. He most recently served as Northern California's associate regional president and chief operating officer during the past year, with responsibility for the strategic and operational leadership of a region that serves 3.3 million members and operates 19 hospitals and 183 medical office facilities.

"This appointment is the result of a succession planning process that has been under way since last year," Tyson said. "Greg is a tremendous leader with a thorough understanding of the health care field, and he is well positioned to succeed Mary Ann Thode in this important role. We are confident he will build on the success of the Northern California Region by continuing to assure that we provide our members with the quality care and superior service they expect from Kaiser Permanente."

"We have an extremely talented and dedicated team in Northern California," Adams said. "I look forward to working more closely with them as Kaiser Permanente continues to take a leadership role in improving the health care experience for our members and for our communities."

Adams began his career with Kaiser Permanente in the Southern California Region, where he held a number of leadership positions, including senior vice president and service area manager of Kaiser's Tri-Central Area and chief operating officer for the region. Before joining the Northern California team, Adams also participated in an executive rotation team with Kaiser's Ohio and Hawaii regions.

Before joining Kaiser Permanente, Adams owned a health care firm that provided strategic and operational improvement consulting to hospitals, health systems and medical groups throughout the United States. He also served as president and CEO of St. Bernadine Medical Center in San Bernardino, Calif.; chief operating officer for Baptist Healthcare System of Southeast Texas; senior vice president of Strategy and Business Development for Catholic Healthcare West in Southern California; and director of Critical Care Services for the Mayo Clinic's St. Mary's Hospital in Rochester, Minnesota.

Adams is a member of the National Association of Health Services Executives, and serves as a member of the Board of Directors of the California Association of Hospitals and the California Chamber of Commerce.

He holds a Master's Degree in Nursing Administration from Wichita State University and a Bachelor's Degree from Oglethorpe University in Atlanta, and he started his career as an emergency room nurse at Crawford Long Hospital of Emory University.

About Kaiser Permanente

Kaiser Permanente is America's leading integrated health plan. Founded in 1945, it is a not-for-profit group practice prepayment program headquartered in Oakland, Calif. Kaiser Permanente serves the health care needs of more than 8.7 million members in nine states and the District of Columbia. Today it encompasses the not-for-profit Kaiser Foundation Health Plan, Inc., Kaiser Foundation Hospitals and their subsidiaries, and the for-profit Permanente Medical Groups. Nationwide, Kaiser Permanente includes approximately 159,000 technical, administrative and clerical employees and caregivers, and more than 13,000 physicians representing all specialties. For more Kaiser Permanente news, visit the KP News Center at: http://xnet.kp.org/newscenter.

http://www.kaiserpermanente.org/

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Source: Kaiser Permanente

CONTACT: Tony Rau of Kaiser Permanente, +1-510-987-3291,
Tony.a.rau@kp.org

Web site: http://www.kaiserpermanente.org/

2008-04-01 18:18:56 0325584 PRNEWSWIRE