BUSINESS
May 4, 2012 | By Chad Terhune, Los Angeles Times
Health Net Inc.shares plunged 25% as the Woodland Hills insurer posted disappointing first-quarter results and slashed its full-year profit outlook. The company surprised analysts and investors by disclosing an additional $67 million in medical claims that hadn't been reported in the fourth quarter because of errors in processing claims. Health Net said outside vendors that handle those claims for the company experienced problems with a new industrywide billing format. Health Net also cut its 2012 profit forecast to a range of $2.35 to $2.50 a share, excluding certain items.
NEWS
February 20, 2012 | By Ian Duncan
A Massachusetts-based building firm gave $25,000 to pro-Romney "super PAC" Restore Our Future, even though its chief executive is a major backer of President Obama . John Fish's company, Suffolk Construction, made the donation on Jan. 4. The company also donated to the super PAC twice in 2011, giving a total of $35,000 last year. At the same time, Fish raised between $100,000 and $200,000 this year for the president's 2012 bid, according to Open Secrets, and Federal Election Commission filings show that Fish gave $2,300 to the Obama campaign in 2007.
OPINION
January 23, 2012
Since taking office in 2007, Ecuador's President Rafael Correa has been in a war of words with the media in his country. He's used archaic libel laws to pursue criminal charges against the owners of El Universo and a columnist at the newspaper. His government has pushed through a law that severely restricts the media's ability to cover political campaigns and elections; indeed, it goes so far as to ban any media reports that can benefit or hurt a candidate. And now he's set his sights on international media observers.
OPINION
January 12, 2012
A content issue Re "TV firms try to upstage absent Apple," Business, Jan. 10 I find it amazing that the next big thing from Apple is expected to be a new way to interact with TV sets. Honestly, waving at my TV or even searching on my tablet for shows isn't what I'm after. Where is the real next big thing: the ability to watch what I want without having to pay for a bunch of channels I never watch? I understand the challenges of making this work, but I am an inch away from dumping my cable provider and getting my condo association to put up a high-definition antenna instead.
BUSINESS
December 31, 2011 | By Stuart Pfeifer, Los Angeles Times
A Beverly Hills financial firm and its founder pleaded guilty to federal criminal charges that they defrauded government agencies by steering investment contracts to firms that paid them kickbacks. David Rubin, 50, and his company, CDR Financial Products Inc., were accused of running sham auctions for government agencies looking to invest money raised through municipal bond offerings. The contracts were awarded to favored firms that secretly paid kickbacks to CDR, not always the firm offering the highest returns, the government alleged.
OPINION
October 24, 2011
For more than 25 years, Radio and TV Marti have served as a reminder of America's failed policy toward Cuba. The stations were launched in 1985 as a way to crack Fidel Castro's control over mass media. Since then, they have become little more than a financial black hole. The government has spent nearly $500 million on, among other things, a twin-engine plane, a blimp and a satellite to beam broadcasts into Cuba. The broadcasts, however, are rarely seen or heard. Castro has successfully jammed the stations' signals, and denounced Washington's efforts as a violation of international treaty obligations.