PBGH: Consumer Advocate to Head Coalition

      Consumer advocate Peter Lee last week was named CEO of the not- for-profit Pacific Business Group on Health, which negotiates health insurance plans for 400,000 employees at 30 of the state's largest companies, the Los Angeles Times reports. In addition to negotiating premiums, the coalition offers information on health plans through an annual report card and its Web site. Last year, the group began auditing some insurers to ensure that premium hikes were used to offset medical costs, not administrative expenditures. Lee, who currently serves as executive director of the Center for Health Care Rights, a consumer advocacy group, will take the reins of PBGH on June 1 (Sur, 5/10).