In most cases, when a worker who has paid for disability benefits files a claim, the insurer will review it and pay. But some cases - markedly those where the insured reports suffering from complex symptoms like chronic pain or long-term injuries of the back, neck and spine - are denied, even if treating physicians and the Social Security Administration find them disabled, the Daily Journal has found. The result is that workers who believed they had a safety net find themselves fighting for benefits at the same time they are dealing with health problems and medical bills.

Some insurers no doubt try to weasel out of paying claims - and it's the state's job to flesh out those cases. But it's not easy, and insurance companies are not always to blame. From L.A. Daily:

A Sunland interior designer plead guilty to two counts of fraud this week after he had claimed disability to the tune of more than $147,000 and an insurance company worker happened to catch the man on television -- working. Ronald E. Hunt, 56 continued working as a designer even as he claimed to be unable to work. But an employee with an insurance company paying his disability claim spotted him on an HGTV home improvement show and told the California Department of Insurance.

Actually, these sorts of cases are not unusual, especially when it comes to back and neck injuries that can be hard to pinpoint. As to how many folks with legitimate cases get shafted, well, who knows? And that's part of the problem. Of course, that shouldn't let CA officials off the hook. From the Daily Journal:

California officials say they do not always have the power to intervene in individual cases, but insist that they don't turn everyone away. How often does the department get involved? It's impossible to know because the Department of Insurance doesn't keep track, a spokesman said. Although the agency said it does track how many complaints it receives about disability insurers: roughly 500 each year. [Insurance Commissioner Steve] Poizner's office has initiated no major investigations or enforcement actions and has levied only one fine against these insurers since he took office in 2007. The department denied a public records request from the Daily Journal to review consumer complaints and Poizner declined an interview.

This guy is running for governor?

*Insurance Department spokesman Darrel Ng wanted to clarify the process by which complaints are received. First off, he says, not all policies covering Californians are primarily regulated in California. From his email:

If you work for a large company that's headquartered in, say, Boston and they offer you health insurance, your policy is governed by the master policy of that company and the state it's issued in. In this case, it would be a Mass. Insurance Company. The best place to file a complaint with would be with the Mass. Department of Insurance. We receive hundreds of thousands of calls every year to our consumer hotline (800-927-HELP) and strive to serve every person who calls. Sometimes that action includes Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner calling an insurance company CEO to get results. Sometimes that means referring people to the correct regulator.

Job numbers: As we posted earlier, the state's unemployment rate in October rose to 12.5 percent from 12.2 the previous month. But in the separate payroll survey, California gained 25,700 jobs. (BLS)

More knocks on Goldman: This time it's coming from the bank's own shareholders, who want the size of the bonus pool reduced so that, well, they can make more money. From the WSJ:

Their complaints in private conversations with the company and at analyst meetings show how anger over its big-money culture is spilling into the ranks of investors who typically shy away from debates over Wall Street pay. One frustration: Despite record net income and compensation at Goldman as markets rebound and the firm outmuscles weakened rivals for business, analysts expect its 2009 earnings per share to be 22% lower than in 2007 and roughly equal to its 2006 earnings, according to Thomson Financial.

Oprah fallout: So how will KABC and the other big ABC stations replace the talk show queen? One idea would be to have "The View," another strong ratings generator, lead into the local news. Another possibility, reports Variety, is that the ABC stations would try to grab "Ellen," whose deal with NBC stations is also up in 2011.

Burkle buying into Barney's: The Bev Hills billionaire, through his Yucaipa investment arm, has picked up a large part of the company's debt - at about 60 cents on the dollar. Istithmar, a unit of Dubai's state-owned Dubai World, paid $942.3 million for the company in 2007, but the retailer took on a bunch of debt in the process. From the WSJ:

One person familiar with the matter said he and his investment fund "have had a great relationship with Dubai for a long time." Mr. Burkle has previously invested in businesses alongside an entity connected to Dubai's ruler, Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid al-Maktoum. Mr. Burkle also has fashion experience, holding stakes in Sean Combs' Sean John clothing lines, specialty retailer Scoop and designer label Zac Posen.

More immigration audits: Federal officials have told 1,000 companies that they will be reviewed to see if illegal immigrants are being hired - just as happened at L.A.-based American Apparel a few months back. The companies weren't identified, though the language of the order suggests that retailers and manufacturers are not being targeted. (NYT)

Doctor groups merge: Burbank-based Lakeside HealthCare was acquired by Heritage Provider Network Inc. of Northridge, a deal that will impact more than 600,000 patients in the SFV. Lakeside apparently was on the verge of filing for bankruptcy. (LAT)

Vivendi-GE haggling: The two companies are at least $1 billion apart in their valuation of the French group's stake in NBC Universal. This could become a stumbling block in Vivendi's exit and the arrival of Comcast as majority owner of NBCU. From the FT:

GE's negotiating position is understood to be that current media sector multiples would imply a price of $4bn-$5bn. Independent analysts' estimates vary, but Bernstein Research has valued NBC Universal at $27bn, suggesting Vivendi could expect $5.4bn for its holding.

Bloodbath at Business Week: About a third of the workforce was cut, including 60-70 in editorial. The business magazine has been taken over by Bloomberg. ((NY Post)

Gas check: Prices keep edging downward. An average gallon in the L.A. area is $2.96, a couple of cents below last week, according to the Auto Club survey. Demand normally drops off this time of year.

Here's more from the NYT:

After her broadcast talk show winds down, Ms. Winfrey will concentrate exclusively on her coming cable channel, OWN: The Oprah Winfrey Network. The channel is a joint venture between her production company and Discovery Communications. Getting the channel off the ground has proved challenging amid management turnover and an uncertain advertising climate. OWN will have its premiere on cable in January 2011, according to a person with knowledge of Ms. Winfrey's decision who insisted on anonymity. That timeline will theoretically give Ms. Winfrey about nine months to promote her cable channel on her existing show.

The biggest changes are occurring at security checkpoints. TSA has been instructing travelers to book tickets using their full legal names, plus birth dates and gender, as part of a "Secure Flight" program to better utilize terrorist watch and warning lists. The hope is that more information will cut down on "false positive" red flags and keep people from unnecessary extra screening, and at the same time make it harder for bad guys to slip through. Some travelers have now had to update frequent-flier program records at airlines to book reservations under full legal names, rather than using middle names or initials.

When there's a holdup, you'll have a harder time finding airline personnel. And if you miss your connection or a flight is cancelled, there will be fewer, if any seats, available on later flights. McCartney warns that if the airline asks for volunteers to give up seats on an overbooked flight, make sure the offer is for a confirmed seat on the next flight. If they put you on standby it could be days before another space opens. That's right - days.

Here's more:

Travelers may also face some security holdups because of beefed up screening of powders in carry-on luggage. TSA is deploying devices at airports to test powders for explosive materials. Powders are legal to be carried aboard airplanes, but TSA says a small percentage may get additional screening. Most medications, infant formula and makeup won't need screening, but for anything TSA decides is suspicious, screeners can now collect a sample and hit it with a liquid to "test for traces of potential explosives."

One local note: Parking at LAX's Lots B and C go up beginning today. Lot B is now $10 a day and C is $12. Both lots offer free parking for the first two hours and there's free shuttle service 24/7.

Air traffic improving: The FAA says its flight computer system is up and running again. Now the airlines must play catch-up on all the flights that have been delayed and cancelled, many of them based out of Atlanta. LAX has had only minor delays. From ABC News:

The system electronically inputs pilots' flight plans to computers, telling air traffic controllers the anticipated route and altitude of each flight after taking off. Controllers reached by ABC News say they have had to enter those plans manually, resulting in a slowdown of takeoffs and landings. Flight plans are processed by the FAA at two centers - one in Utah and another in Georgia. The FAA is investigating which center experienced the computer problem.

More IOUs?: Controller John Chiang warns that if tax revenues keep coming in below projections, the state could have trouble making payments as early as next spring. From the WSJ:

Regarding the prospect of delayed payment of its obligations, Mr. Chiang, the state's controller, said: "We don't want to revisit the dangerous scenario we were in twice last year....It's all in the governor's and legislature's hands, and if they're serious about protecting Californians, they'll resolve it quickly." But state legislators don't expect swift resolution.

Budget woes into the future: Don't expect tax revenue to really pick up until the 2014-2015 budget year, according to the state's chief budget analyst, Mac Taylor. From the LAT:

A major reason the recovery will take so long, say many experts, is California's place at the epicenter of the real estate slide and the resulting foreclosure wave. Moreover, "the mess in Sacramento is going to affect the California economy," said Jerry Nickelsburg, senior economist at UCLA Anderson Forecast, "and not in a good way." Californians must get used to a state that offers fewer services -- and has higher taxes -- than before the real estate boom, Taylor's report suggests. But it remains to be seen how much residents will accept.

Hooray for muni bonds!: A glut of state offerings, not to mention all the discouraging budget news, is having only minimal impact on the market. From the LAT:

The per-share net asset value of the Franklin California Tax-Free Income fund, which holds $14.2 billion of state and local debt, was $6.90 on Wednesday, a drop of 4% from the 52-week high of $7.19 on Oct. 5. That's unfortunate for anyone who bought near the high, but year-to-date the fund's total return (share price gain plus interest earned) still is a hefty 15.6%. And that's even better than it looks, given that the interest earned is exempt from state and federal income tax.

AOL downsizing: After its spinoff from Time Warner next month, the company wants to reduce its workforce by at least a third. It's asking for 2,500 volunteers. (MediaMemo)

Glass ceiling persists: Just over 10 percent of the executive positions in CA's biggest companies are women, according to a new study, a slight decline from 2008. What's the problem? "It's a mix of sociology, corporate culture and skill building," said Wendy Beecham of the Forum for Women Entrepreneurs and Executives. (LAT)

DirecTV going global: That's where media titan John Malone expects the El Segundo-based satellite service to focus, especially with the hiring of former Pepsico executive Michael White as CEO. Malone's Liberty Media is about break out Liberty Entertainment and merge it with DirecTV. He expects White to make a big push in Latin America. (DJ)

"New Moon" watch: Huge advance sales for the "Twilight" sequel that opens at 12:01 a.m. on 3,500 screens (quite a few are already sold out). Projections for the full weekend box office are in the $85 million range.(THR)

Hollywood Reporter sale nears: The Wrap's Sharon Waxman says the deal may close on Friday. Also included in the purchase by James Finkelstein are Billboard, Adweek, Brandweek and Mediaweek. Still no word on price.

Do your books just get optioned and never made into movies? Yes! Bought, actually. If you option it, it's a small sum of money and it expires. If you buy it, it's a larger sum of money and they own it forever. So if they don't make it, it's gone. So, I mean, Warner Bros. owns Liars' Poker and I think they've put something like $2 million into it already and it's just vanished. All right, look, the Hollywood development process, someone some day is going to write something really good about it. It doesn't, to my eyes, make a lot of sense. They waste a lot of money and it's not clear if there's any kind of logic to the process other than the enthusiasm of whoever happens to have bought it. What was weird about this case was it was different from every other experience that I've had, in that it almost didn't matter who had bought it. Fox bought it in the beginning, but it felt like, well, if they weren't going to do it, someone was going to do it. So it was going to be wrestled out of Fox and to somewhere else, and that's what happened. Fox bought it and decided not to make it.

Why'd they decide not to make it?
I'm being honest when I tell you I have no idea. The best writer in Hollywood is a dead writer. I mean, it would be better if I was dead, as an author. I have no place in the process! None. I mean, I've written this book. Someone will need to come along, like John Lee did, and if it's going to be any good, they've got to sort of break it and redo it, as they did...

And what of the Liars' Poker movie?
Dead, I think. Completely dead.

The rule was adopted against the backdrop of a larger state effort to cut heat-trapping greenhouse gas pollutants by 28 percent by 2020. Public utilities, which backed the measure, estimate it will reduce carbon dioxide emissions by 3 million metric tons over a decade. Nearly three years in the making, the measure is the latest in a long line of energy efficiency regulations pioneered by the California Energy Commission for a appliances ranging from refrigerators to cell-phone chargers.

The commission said more than 1,000 TV models now on the market already meet the 2011 standards.

In the Wells Fargo case, the state alleged that the bank's sales personnel weren't properly trained in the intricacies of auction-rate securities and that the risks of the investments weren't explained to clients. Investors, which included retirees, put up amounts ranging from $25,000 into the millions of dollars, the suit says. In one case, Brown said, a Bay Area company shifted $400,000 in working capital from a money market account to auction-rate securities. The business intended to use the money to expand, according to the attorney general's office, but when the auction-rate market failed, the company couldn't access the money and instead was forced to lay off workers.

*A regents committee has approved a 32 percent boost in student fees. It'll be sent to the full board for review. Also, the arrest count is up to 14, according to AP.