Kaiser

For the sixth consecutive year, Kaiser Permanente ranked highest in customer satisfaction for health insurance among California policyholders, according to ratings firm J.D. Power and Associates. Anthem Blue Cross, the state's largest for-profit health insurer, and Woodland Hills insurer Health Net Inc. scored the lowest on customer satisfaction among seven California health plans. Kaiser, the nation's largest nonprofit health plan and hospital system, also led the way in customer satisfaction in Colorado, the Mid-Atlantic states and the South Atlantic area.

California's health insurance exchange said more than 30 plans are expected to vie with one another for spots in the state-run marketplace opening next fall. State officials, and those in other states, are eager to flex their purchasing power under the federal healthcare law by selecting only certain individual and small-business health plans for 19 different regions across California. The exchange, branded Tuesday as Covered California, will negotiate with insurers for the best rates and will assist consumers and small businesses in choosing a plan by separating them into five categories based on cost and level of benefits.

For people who've assumed they'll take the option of continuing their employer-based health insurance -- at their own expense -- if they lose their jobs during 2009, it was sobering news. For those who have lost their jobs, it was painfully unsurprising.

A long-awaited redevelopment project known as Marlton Square in South Los Angeles is set to move forward with the sale of a large portion of the site to Kaiser Permanente. Kaiser, the nation's largest nonprofit health plan and hospital system, plans to build two medical office buildings on the northeast corner of Marlton Avenue and Santa Rosalia Drive, real estate broker Jamie Brooks of CBRE Group Inc. said. Kaiser doctors will treat patients at the new facilities. The 22-acre Marlton Square was identified by city officials two decades ago as a prime site for redevelopment, and millions of dollars in public funds were committed for improvements.

Consumers receive their fair share of sucker punches from big corporations. But this one's a real beauty. And it affects all California seniors with Medicare Advantage plans offered by Anthem Blue Cross. Melvin Salse, 71, of North Hollywood received a letter from the insurance giant recently stating that "it has been our pleasure to provide you with Medicare Advantage coverage. " Salse, a retired TV producer, was assured that he's "a valued member" of the company and that "we look forward to providing you with outstanding service for years to come.

A 10-year-old girl abducted from her Northridge home was sexually assaulted, law enforcement sources said. The sources, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because the case was ongoing, did not provide details but said the kidnapping case has now expanded to include a sex-crime investigation. Authorities announced Wednesday night they were searching for two male suspects, though detailed descriptions were unavailable. A second vehicle also was being sought, authorities said, but no description was given.

Sure, smoking is bad for you -- but what happens when you combine it with something really good -- like running eight miles a day? Do you get a healthier smoker? Or an unhealthy athlete? It's one of those is-the-cigarette-half-smoked-or-half-unsmoked conundrums. And there's no definitive answer. "If people can quit, that's the best thing," says Dr. Robert Sallis, director of sports medicine at Kaiser Permanente Medical Center in Fontana.

First of four parts Reporting from Calexico, Calif. -- N ever lose track of the load. It was drilled into everybody who worked for Carlos “Charlie” Cuevas. His drivers, lookouts, stash house operators, dispatchers -- they all knew. When a shipment was on the move, a pair of eyes had to move with it. Cuevas had just sent a crew of seven men to the border crossing at Calexico, Calif. The load they were tracking was cocaine, concealed in a custom-made compartment inside a blue 2003 Honda Accord.

The amount of time young people spend consuming media has ballooned with around-the-clock access and mobile devices that function practically as appendages, according to a new report. Young people now devote an average of seven hours and 38 minutes to daily media use, or about 53 hours a week -- more than a full-time job -- according to Kaiser Family Foundation findings released today. A few years ago, the same researchers thought that teens and tweens were consuming about as much media as humanly possible in the hours available.

Walt Disney Co. believes that World of Cars, its new subscription-based online community aimed at boys and based on the Pixar movie "Cars," won't get lost in the traffic of virtual worlds. Things are already a bit congested. Some 200 virtual worlds target children under 12. Each competes for a slice of the 10 hours and 45 minutes a day the Kaiser Family Foundation estimates that kids spend viewing media, simultaneously vying for screen time against a growing number of portable media players and smart phones that offer their own diversions.