After roughly half a century with the same health care partner, Denver Public Schools is looking to cut ties with Kaiser Permanente. The proposed move would force thousands of teachers and staff to find new doctors or switch plans, landing squarely in the middle of people’s ongoing treatments and personal lives. What started as a routine contract process has now turned into a very public fight, complete with a looming board vote and a formal union grievance.
According to The Denver Post, district leaders are recommending that Kaiser be removed as an employee health plan option, based on the results of a formal request-for-proposal process. The recommended contract would run from July 1 through June 30, 2029. The paper reports that Kaiser sent members a notice in December saying coverage for Denver Public Schools staff was expected to end July 1, and that the Denver Classroom Teachers Association has filed a grievance alleging administrators went around the district benefits board. The Denver Post also notes that DPS placed Chief of Talent Edwin Hudson on administrative leave in November amid questions about how the proposal process was handled, and that a later internal review concluded the process was run with integrity.
Union leaders and many employees say the fallout would be severe. As reported by CBS Colorado, Denver Classroom Teachers Association President Rob Gould said members are “devastated,” including staff currently in active cancer treatment. Union representatives have demanded the full RFP documents and the cost breakdowns the district used to justify dropping Kaiser.
Bids, scores and the budget
Documents tied to the board agenda show the district’s evaluation team scored MotivHealth at 77.7, UnitedHealthcare at 76, and Kaiser at 69.3. Kaiser’s cost sub-score landed at just 8.9 out of 20, a figure Denver Public Schools officials say carried significant weight in the recommendation. According to The Denver Post, the employee health budget for the district jumped about 20 percent, roughly $12 million, to more than $72 million for the 2025–26 year. Officials point to that surge as the reason they are pushing a change they say is intended to rein in rising costs. The district argues that choosing other carriers could ease projected increases for both taxpayers and staff…