Sea Mar Community Health Centers has informed the Vashon Health Care District that all Kaiser Permanente insurance plans now are accepted at Sea Mar’s clinic at Sunrise Ridge. “This is great news for the island,” said Tom Langland, president of the Health Care District’s board of commissioners. “When we were negotiating with Sea Mar this fall to have them assume operation of the clinic, we emphasized the importance of their contracting with all major third-party payers, including Kaiser.”
Kaiser has more than 2,000 members on Vashon. Sea Mar accepted most Kaiser plans from the day it began operating the island clinic in early November. The contract for the final plan that had previously not been accepted was finalized the week of Dec. 14. “One of the district’s goals is ensure accessible primary care for all islanders,” Langland said. “This is an important step in that direction.”