Marsh USA Letter: Malpractice Damage Caps Won’t Lower Doctors’ Premiums
<br />
<!-- excerpt -->
Insurance
Insurance news, investigations, and reform — auto, home, and health insurance rates, claims denials, and industry accountability.
Voters Might Face Flood of Fall Ballot Initiatives;
<h3>Almost 80 applications, some redundant, have been submitted to state officials for approval.</h3><p class="source">Los Angeles Times</p>
<p>"Its the apocalypse strategy," said consumer activist Jamie Court of the Santa Monica-based Foundation for Taxpayer and Consumer Rights, which is backing initiatives on cheaper prescription drugs.</p>
Insurers give Doyle $28,500;
<h3>Donations called 'quid pro quo politics' after merger</h3><p class="source">Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Wisconsin)</p>
<p>The Wellpoint-related donations to Gov. Doyle follow a similar pattern the firm has set elsewhere, said Jerry Flanagan, health-care advocate for FTCR, based in California. Such donations give the appearance of "pay to play," Flanagan said.</p>
Arnold Inc: Living Like a Star
<p class="source">CBS TV5 San Francisco</p>
<p>"No one can buy me," Schwarzenegger said. "I am independently financially successful. I have enough money that I don't have to take anyone's money to be bought. That is the key thing." But it's not so simple, when you look at the bills he has signed and v</p>
Cellphone Companies Win on the PUC’s Bad Call
<p class="source">Los Angeles Times</p>
<p>Our governor, Arnold Schwarzenegger, ripped away these regulatory chains after six major wireless companies begged him to liberate them from their bondage. Schwarzenegger's PUC silenced the consumer-rights types who had spent four years hashing out the co</p>
Appeals Court Deals Blow to City
<p class="source">The LookOut (Santa Monica, CA)</p>
<p>Voters approved the strongest conflict of interest initiative in the nation to fight corruption in four California cities, and it's time that protection was carried out in those cities and brought to other cities across the state, said Carmen Balber, con</p>
Court Rebuffs Challenge to Corruption Initiative
<p class="source">Los Angeles Daily Journal</p>
<p>The Oaks Initiative, which was backed by activist Harvey Rosenfield's Santa Monica-based FTCR, prohibits city officials from taking campaign contributions, large gifts or jobs from people who receive city contract work worth more than $25,000.</p>
Court Rebuffs Challenge to Corruption Initiative
<p class="source">Los Angeles Daily Journal</p>
<p>The Oaks Initiative, which was backed by activist Harvey Rosenfield's Santa Monica-based FTCR, prohibits city officials from taking campaign contributions, large gifts or jobs from people who receive city contract work worth more than $25,000.</p>
Nurses Take on the $50 Million Man
<font face="verdana,sans-serif" size="2">Governor Schwarzenegger told
the LA Times Saturday that he would raise about $50 million for his
2005 special election ballot initiative campaigns from national
sources. Wall Street has the...</font>
Car Dealers in Capitol’s Fast Lane;
<h3>While Schwarzenegger declares war on 'special interests,' he has helped one of the state's most effective lobbies get showroom treatment.</h3><p class="source">Los Angeles Times</p>
<p>After the dealers and the rest of the auto industry helped underwrite Schwarzenegger's 2003 gubernatorial campaign, giving him more than $1 million through his first year in office, the Republican sided with dealers last year by killing their most hated</p>
Missing out on a windfall
<p class="source">Milwaukee Journal Sentinel (Wisconsin)</p>
<p>In the midst of yet another budget deficit, the Doyle administration missed a chance to obtain perhaps tens of millions of dollars by negotiating a concession package before approving the merger of two giant health insurance firms last year.</p>
Nurse: Can I Have a Socket Wrench?
<font face="verdana,sans-serif" size="2">Arnold's head honcho on
consumer issues said today that in order to save money, California
should "cross-train" its consumer protection investigators. In fact,
Secretary of State and...</font>