latimes.com - David Lazarus

GOP healthcare plan isn't about helping the uninsured

Sun, 8 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0800

Among other things, the proposal would actually increase the number of people without health insurance over the next decade. But it allows the Republicans to say they offered a cheaper alternative.

Republican lawmakers issued their own healthcare reform plan the other day, and you'd have to look hard to find a more cynical document purporting to represent the best interests of the American people.

Real estate company's pitch leads to unexpected bill

Wed, 4 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0800

Even though Maria Casanova ended her RealtyTrac subscription not long after enrolling, an ad that appeared on the foreclosure listing site led to her being billed $44.95 a month for another service.

Maria Casanova, an assistant professor of economics at UCLA, toyed with the idea earlier this year of buying a foreclosed property near the Westwood campus. She signed up for a prominent listing service called RealtyTrac.

Business leaders' opposition to public health insurance option takes chutzpah

Sun, 1 Nov 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Where do they expect the thousands of workers they've laid off and their families to get coverage?

Eastman Kodak Co. has said sayonara to about 22,000 workers over the last five years. Verizon Communications Inc. says it will have handed about 16,000 workers their hats by Dec. 31 -- and it is already looking ahead to the possibility of more layoffs next year.

Health insurer profits even when denying coverage

Wed, 28 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Altadena resident Mike Freas was twice rejected for health coverage by Anthem Blue Cross because of a preexisting condition, forcing him into a costly state-run program intended to serve as the insurer of last resort for people turned away by the private sector.

Citibank shows why credit card holders need protection

Sun, 25 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Months before a law takes effect that cracks down on abuses by credit card issuers, the bank increases interest rates to almost 30% on customers who pay their bills on time.

Ed Myska works as executive vice president of El Segundo's Bank of Manhattan, so it's pretty fair to say that he knows a thing or two about keeping his financial house in order.

Health insurer tries to avoid owning up to error

Wed, 21 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Who should pay when a health insurer screws up? Not the insurer, apparently.

DirecTV customer service leaves Station fire victim feeling burned

Sun, 18 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Until it was called to account, the company was charging Ken Gray for the cost of satellite-TV receivers that, along with his house, had been reduced to ashes.

Ken Gray lost everything in August when his two-bedroom cabin burned to the ground in the devastating Station fire, the largest blaze in recorded Los Angeles County history.

How about a bailout for student debtors?

Wed, 14 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0700

If the U.S. can come to the assistance of banks and homeowners, surely it could offer a helping hand in the form of lower interest rates for students.

Like many recent college grads, Los Angeles resident Steven Lee finds himself unemployed in one of the roughest job markets in decades and saddled with a big pile of debt. He owes about $84,000 in student loans for undergrad and grad-school costs.

IPhone data roaming switch is problematic

Wed, 7 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Check your smart phone's settings before traveling abroad to avoid possible sky-high charges.

Santa Monica resident Nathan Oventhal had heard the horror stories about people getting slammed with hundreds or thousands of dollars in roaming charges after traveling abroad with a smart phone. He was determined not to let it happen to him.

Bank's refusal to refinance this couple's loan is astounding

Sun, 4 Oct 2009 00:00:00 -0700

Lending rules that were once catastrophically lenient are now heartlessly strict.

One reason we got into our current economic mess is because banks handed out home loans to pretty much anyone with a pulse, regardless of their ability to, you know, actually make mortgage payments.