PBGH: Web Site to Offer Comparative Look At Insurers

      The Pacific Business Group on Health, a San Francisco-based organization that negotiates insurance rates for the area's largest corporations, will post "up-to-date comparisons of leading health plans" on its Web site, www.healthscope.com, the San Francisco Chronicle reports. PBGH Communications Director Leslie Rose said the release of the comparisons was timed to coincide with the period when employers offering more than one health plan allow their employees to switch plans. Rose said, "During this open-enrollment period, people need to be thinking about what kind of health plan they want and what kind of medical groups are part of that plan." Visitors to the site can see whether certain doctors or hospitals are covered under different plans. The site also offers ratings for doctors and hospitals based on various state reports and consumer and employer feedback. Californians also can get information about HMOs, including their complaint rates, from the state Department of Managed Care's Web site, www.hmohelp.ca.gov (Abate, 9/22).