“Profits Over Patients:” New Report Details Kaiser’s Financial Practices and Patient Harm

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE: Thursday, January 15, 2026

Contact: press@unacuhcp.org

“PROFITS OVER PATIENTS:” NEW REPORT DETAILS KAISER’S FINANCIAL PRACTICES AND PATIENT HARM

Union analysis finds the health care giant has amassed billions in reserves and prioritized aggressive expansion while chronic understaffing and delayed care access put patients at risk

 

LOS ANGELES, CA — United Nurses Associations of California/United Health Care Professionals (UNAC/UHCP) released a new report today warning that Kaiser Permanente patients are being harmed by chronic understaffing and delayed access to care, all while Kaiser’s financial decisions stray dangerously from its public “nonprofit” mission.

The report, “Profits Over Patients,” describes worsening safety risks, staff burnout, and longer waits for appointments and services at Kaiser even as health plan premium rates continue to rise. These conditions persist alongside $7.9 billion in net income across the first three quarters of 2025 and a $66 billion dollar surplus for Kaiser, levels outside analysts have described as extraordinary for a nonprofit health care system.

In addition to patient care concerns, the report examines Kaiser’s investment activity, including ties to private prisons, ICE detention centers, fracking, predatory lending, and other ventures that conflict with its health care mission and raise urgent ethical questions for a tax-favored nonprofit.

The analysis draws on public financial disclosures, court filings, regulatory enforcement actions, investigative journalism, and firsthand accounts submitted by patients and caregivers through a public reporting portal.

The report is available at InvestinPatientCare.org

“Kaiser says it’s a nonprofit focused on people. But our patients and our members are living something else: not enough staff, too much work, delayed care, and preventable breakdowns,” said Charmaine S. Morales, RN, President of UNAC/UHCP, the union representing approximately 31,000 Kaiser Permanente nurses and health care professionals across California and Hawaii.

“Kaiser isn’t strapped for resources. It’s making choices — and those choices are hurting people. It’s time for accountability.”

Staffing shortages and escalating workloads are contributing to delays in care, increased risk of error, and burnout across critical clinical roles. Patients and caregivers report difficulty securing timely appointments, shortened visits, and inadequate follow-up, conditions the union says directly threaten patient safety.

BILLIONS IN SURPLUS, BUT STILL “CAN’T AFFORD” SAFE STAFFING

UNAC/UHCP rejects claims that Kaiser cannot afford meaningful staffing improvements, citing Kaiser’s reported financial performance to date:

• Q1 2025: $2.021 billion
• Q2 2025: $3.257 billion
• Q3 2025: $2.577 billion

In addition, the report points to external estimates indicating Kaiser held more than $66–$67 billion in unrestricted cash and investments at the end of 2024.

UNAC/UHCP released the report while collective bargaining is still underway. Members are urging Kaiser to return to the bargaining table to negotiate common sense solutions for staffing, scheduling, training, and safety.

UNAC/UHCP CALLS FOR REFORM: “NONPROFIT SHOULD MEAN PATIENT-FIRST, IN LAW AND IN PRACTICE”

UNAC/UHCP is calling for stronger oversight of nonprofit health systems, including:

• Greater transparency around investments, reserves, and rate increases
• Independent monitoring of staffing and wait times
• Governance reforms that give patient and frontline clinicians a meaningful voice in decision-making

“Kaiser is big enough to set the standard for American health care,” said Executive Director Joe Guzynski, JD, MA. “If this is allowed to be the model — profit-like surpluses, massive reserves, chronic understaffing — the harm won’t stay inside Kaiser. It becomes the blueprint. That’s why we are in these contract negotiations fighting for patient care.”

UNAC/UHCP is urging policymakers, regulators, employers purchasing coverage, and Kaiser members nationwide to read the report and demand action at InvestinPatientCare.org.