Medical Care Industry Orange County

PacifiCare Health Systems Inc., facing criticism from shareholders over its declining stock price, said Monday that it plans to repurchase up to 10% of its shares of common and preferred stock. Since reaching a 52-week high of $85 in March, shares of the large managed care company have been slumping. On Friday, the stock hit a low of $47.88 a share. The drop came after the company issued a November warning that it sees a fourth-quarter loss on higher-than-expected charges and medical costs.

Apria Healthcare Group Inc. said its board rejected an acquisition bid from former executive Timothy M. Aitken and a major New York investor. Apria said the bid by Aitken's Transworld HealthCare Inc. and its 70% owner, Hyperion Partners II, isn't in the best interest of the home health care company's shareholders. In October, Transworld and Hyperion offered to buy Apria for $918 million, or $18 a share, in cash and stock.

In the rapidly changing world of managed care, one thing seems to remain the same--patient complaints. California Health Decisions, an Orange-based nonprofit organization, recently surveyed 100 members of California health plans and 100 physicians. One-third of the participants said they had encountered problems getting health-plan approvals or referrals to medical specialists or certain treatments. Many complained of having to wait too long for approvals.

Pacific Biometrics restated its third-quarter loss to $1.3 million, or 88 cents a share, from the loss of $1.1 million, or 62 cents, that the Irvine company reported May 11. Pacific, which develops diagnostic tests and laboratory services for chronic diseases, also amended its loss for the nine-months ended March 31 to $1.30 a share, from a loss of $1.04 a share reported earlier.

The HealthCare Foundation for Orange County has awarded $330,000 in grants for community-based medical, prenatal and dental services in partnership with three area hospitals. The money, part of the new foundation's "Partners for Health Projects," will augment programs in Santa Ana and Anaheim neighborhoods that deliver health care to low-income families and migrant workers.

Three of Orange County's health-care giants, PacifiCare Health Systems Inc., Allergan Inc. and Bergen Brunswig Corp., each reported double-digit gains in quarterly profits Wednesday. The news sent Allergan stock up 7% and PacifiCare up nearly 10%, making them among the top gainers on Wall Street. PacifiCare, the nation's largest operator of Medicare health-maintenance organizations, said second-quarter earnings rose 41% as it increased premiums for its commercial plans.

PacifiCare Health Systems Inc. gave its top executive an options package last year that could be worth as much as $68.8 million, depending on the managed-care health insurer's performance during the next decade. On top of the options to buy 445,000 shares, Chief Executive Alan Hoops received salary and other pay of $983,038 in 1997, according to the company's proxy filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Trimedyne Inc., the troubled Irvine designer of medical lasers, said Wednesday it has changed public accountants to cut expenses. Marvin P. Loeb, chairman and chief executive, said the company dropped the major accounting firm PriceWaterhouseCoopers LLP in favor of a small firm that charges about half as much. "It's purely a cost thing for us," Loeb said. "PriceWaterhouse is a great firm. We've used them for a number of years, and they're quite expensive."

CorVel Corp.: The Irvine provider of managed care services reported third-quarter net income of $2.4 million, or 56 cents a share, a gain of 9% from $2.2 million, or 46 cents a share, for the same period a year ago. Revenue for the quarter ended Dec. 31 increased 17% to $35.6 million from $30.4 million. For the first nine months, net income rose 13% to $7.1 million, or $1.63 a share, from $6.3 million, or $1.33 a share, for the first three quarters of the prior fiscal year.

PacifiCare Health Systems Inc. said Monday it expects financial results to fall substantially below analysts' estimates for the second quarter because of slower sales in California and several other markets. The managed health-care company said sales failed to meet expectations in several markets served by FHP International Inc., the Orange County competitor that PacifiCare acquired in February for $2.1 billion. PacifiCare was expected to earn $1.