With Jerry Brown running, maybe "the ‘60s will return and spoil the Mad Hatter's tea party"

By GottaLaff

Every so often, the L.A. Times letters to the editor are worth a post. This is one of those times:

Jerry Brown, then and now

Re "Brown calls for debate with rivals," April 18

As a Republican, I applaud Jerry Brown's call, delivered at the convention, for a debate with all the candidates. I want to know what they are going to do if they become governor. I do not care how many unflattering photos of their opponents they can find. If that's the best they can do, I suggest they go back to their old high schools and run for class president instead of governor of this state.

****

Perhaps with Brown again running for governor and Cheech and Chong back performing (as The Times reports), there is a chance that some of the idealism and hope of the ‘60s will return and spoil the Mad Hatter's tea party.

Click on red button:

Jerry Brown takes the lead in California

By GottaLaff

A hopeful sign for my state:

A new Rasmussen survey in California finds Jerry Brown (D) taking a 6-point lead in the gubernatorial race over Meg Whitman (R), 44% to 38%.

A month ago the two candidates were tied at 40%.

So Meggy's Money isn't necessarily the answer?

Following last weekend’s Democratic Convention in California, the party’s newly nominated gubernatorial candidate Jerry Brown has gained little ground, but support for his top Republican opponent, former eBay CEO Meg Whitman, has fallen off slightly.

Yes, it's early, and she's sunk millions into her campaign already and adding more as we speak,while Brown is only just getting out there.

This is not who I want as the face of California:


Ahnold's bad enough.

California investigates HMO claims-rejection rates

By GottaLaff

The idea of a public option is such a pain. Fighting that Rushpublic minority is way too hard. Besides, we wouldn't want to make Big Insurance compete with unsuccessful Big Scary Government programs like Medicare. It's so much more preferable to continue this kind of thing:

California Atty. Gen. Jerry Brown is joining state regulators in scrutinizing how HMOs review and pay insurance claims submitted by doctors, hospitals and other medical providers.

His announcement came Thursday as regulators said they had stepped up scrutiny of the payment practices of the state's seven largest health plans in response to complaints from physicians and hospitals.

The increased attention also comes on the heels of a first-of-its-kind report issued this week that said the California health insurers reject 1 in 5 medical claims.

Six of the state's largest insurers rejected 45.7 million claims for medical care, or 22% of all claims, from 2002 to June 30, 2009, according to the California Nurses Assn.'s analysis of data submitted to regulators by the companies.

Nope, wouldn't want to disturb that trend. That would be unAmerican.

The rejection rates ranged from a high of 39.6% for PacifiCare to 6.5% for Aetna for the first half of 2009. Cigna denied 33%, and Health Net 30%.

Anthem Blue Cross, the state's largest for-profit health plan, and Kaiser, the state's largest nonprofit plan, each rejected 28% of claims.

Blue Shield, a nonprofit with 3.4 million California members, is the only large health plan that does not report claims-denial figures in its annual report to the state Department of Managed Health Care.\

Yep, TeaDeathers, we have the best system in the whole wide world. How could we have ever doubted you?