Times Ventura County Editor

There are an estimated 500 churches and synagogues in Ventura County, and they have played a major role in shaping our communities since the days of the Spanish missionaries. Today, we are expanding the religion coverage that you normally find on Saturdays. We have added more local features and articles about local religious activities around the county on Page B12. This is one of several changes we have made in the last few months, following the addition of new editorial and letters pages on Sundays, our Monday education page and our new Ventura County Life columns.

The bottom-line question about health care for an increasing number of Ventura County residents is a frightening one: Are patients being shortchanged under HMO plans? The controversy over HMOs has erupted into one of the hot-button issues of the year and the push for reforms is on at the national, state and local levels. Early this year, we assigned staff writer Daryl Kelley to look at how HMOs are working in Ventura County. The result is a three-part series that starts Sunday and continuesMonday and Tuesday.