San Leandro Kaiser has been hit with further fines; KP includes 10% of California COVID citations

SAN LEANDRO, California. – A review of state workplace records shows Kaiser Permanente hospitals account for 10% of all Cal-OSHA coronavirus violations across California, and its San Leandro location was hit with heavy fines this week last, revealed an analysis of KTVU.

Since the outbreak in mid-March, Cal-OSHA has fined 110 companies for COVID violations. Kaiser includes 11 of these companies for a total of 47 violations; 25 of them serious.

In terms of penalty, Kaiser’s citations totaled $ 454,420 out of $ 2.3 million since mid-March.

A review of the records shows that the Kaiser Permanente hospitals in San Jose, Antioch, Santa Rosa, San Francisco, Santa Clara, Oakland, Redwood City and localities in Southern California were also cited.

Among Kaiser’s latest violations: Cal-OSHA fined Kaiser San Leandro $ 87,500 on Jan.4.

State investigators found that Kaiser San Leandro staff did not complete the appropriate forms for occupational illnesses; maintain an effective respiratory protection program; and notify employees who have had “significant exposures” to COVID-19 cases from May to August.

Cal-OSHA also found that Kaiser San Leandro did not provide the required training to employees on aerosol-borne pathogens and did not immediately report the serious illness suffered by an employee hospitalized for COVID-19. Cal-OSHA noted that this was a repeat violation.

Additionally, Cal-OSHA said the San Leandro Kaiser does not provide employees with post-exposure medical services.

Responding to questions from KTVU on Thursday, Kaiser said he appealed to all citations and “as such, they should not be considered final decisions.”

To be fair, Kaiser is one of the largest nonprofit health care plans in the United States, but it has also faced a slew of sanctions from Cal-OSHA, the agency d State responsible for safety at work.

Kaiser noted that his height was likely related to the number of quotes he faced.

“Not only does Kaiser Permanente have a significant number of large hospitals in California,” according to a previous statement, “we were also among the first to treat patients with COVID-19 – which we are extremely proud of, but which also provided high visibility for these efforts. ”

Kaiser said the quotes mostly stem from allegations at the start of the pandemic, “as health care systems, including ours, grapple with national shortages and evolving public health directions. “.

In a number of cases, Kaiser has said these complaints do not align with Cal / OSHA, CDC or other state or local public health guidelines in effect at the time.

“Since the very beginning of the pandemic, our staff have done everything possible to ensure that Kaiser Permanente’s facilities remain safe workplaces and receive high quality care,” said Kaiser.

Kaiser also noted that at the start of the pandemic, some advocacy groups made efforts to file complaints against Cal-OSHA as part of their campaign to advocate for a change in regulatory guidelines then in effect.

“We understand this, but it does not take away from the excellent work that has been done to care for our patients, keep our staff safe, and comply with federal, state and local public health guidelines in previous circumstances,” Kaiser said.

Kaiser is often recognized for his strong emphasis on preventative care and the holistic approach to medicine.

But at the same time, Kaiser has had disputes with his employees’ unions, and he has been repeatedly charged in civil and criminal proceedings with falsifying records and dumping patients and forced to defend his actions by regulators on the quality of care provided, especially to patients with mental health problems.

Even though the San Leandro quote is the most recent Kaiser cited by Cal-OSHA, the most publicized case related to the coronavirus, however, took place at the Kaiser in San Jose.

This is where a well-meaning employee, who unintentionally had coronavirus, dressed up as an inflatable tree on Christmas Day and may have caused a super-spreading event.

As of this week, nearly 100 employees and patients have officially tested positive as of that day, and one Kaiser staff member has died, according to the Santa Clara County Public Health Department. The number of positive cases is probably even higher than that.

State and county investigators are now trying to pinpoint the source of this outbreak. Santa Clara County is fining Kaiser San Jose $ 43,000 for failing to timely report the outbreak to the Department of Health.

But a month before Christmas Day, Cal-OSHA fined that same San Jose Kaiser $ 87,350 for violations arising shortly after the outbreak, including failing to report cases on time. timely and not providing the proper equipment to employees.

Kaiser also failed to inform patients of the outbreak, according to several people who contacted KTVU, despite public assurances from the hospital.

For example, Jori Buriani told KTVU that while she was in the emergency room on Christmas Day to be treated for a dislocated shoulder, Kaiser never told her about the outbreak. She and her husband have since tested positive for the virus.

“Yeah, I’m furious that I found out about my exposure from watching the news,” Buriani told KTVU in an interview over the weekend. “Don’t say you did something you didn’t do to cover your ass.”

Here is the list of Cal-OSHA citations levied against Kaiser in California regarding coronavirus and workplace safety:

• Kaiser San Leandro $ 87,500
• Kaiser San Jose $ 87,375
• Kaiser Oakland $ 78,300
• Kaiser Antioch $ 56,000
• Kaiser Santa Rosa $ 55,350
• Kaiser Redwood City $ 39,685
• Kaiser Ontario $ 18,075
• Kaiser San Francisco $ 16,400
• Kaiser Santa Clara $ 11,200
• Kaiser Lancaster $ 5,000
• Kaiser Zion in San Diego

Source: Cal-OSHA

Lisa Fernandez is a reporter for KTVU. Email Lisa at [email protected] or call her at 510-874-0139. Or follow her on Twitter @ljfernandez