IBM signs $500 mn deal with Kaiser Permanente

NEW YORK, USA: IT major IBM announced on Monday that it has signed a seven-year technology-services contract worth $500 million with Kaiser Permanente, a provider in integrated health plan.

As part of the agreement, IBM will leverage its global technology capabilities to manage Kaiser Permanente's data center operations, including computer systems, storage systems and associated software, said a press release.

Kaiser Permanente will continue to manage applications, including the organization's electronic health record - Kaiser Permanente HealthConnect - it added.

"IBM sees information-based medicine helping propel health care from its currently unconnected local and regional sectors into a borderless industry that spans the globe," said Chris Nicoletti, IBM vice president, Healthcare and Life Sciences Industry.

"IBM is pleased to work closely with Kaiser Permanente's industry-leading IT organization in efforts to make health care more interconnected, more instrumented and more intelligent," he added.

Each day, 14,000 physicians and thousands of other caregivers access KP HealthConnect and related IT systems to support care and service delivery, the release said.

Additionally, 2.7 million members use 'My Health Manager' on kp.org to access their online personal health record and other services, including secure email and prescription refills.

The IBM strategic agreement would ensure that these systems are available for use when and wherever they are needed, said the release.

"This agreement, grown out of our long-standing strategic relationship with IBM, will allow us to build on our leadership in health care technology, staying focused on the safety, satisfaction and privacy of our members and patients and ensuring that our physicians and clinicians continue to deliver real-time, personalized health care," said Phil Fasano, chief information officer for Kaiser Permanente.

As a result of the agreement, about 700 positions in Kaiser Permanente's data center operations will be eliminated, said the release. Some of the affected employees will be eligible for employment with IBM, it added.