A day out of the office and look at what happens. Very few posts. As much as we don't agree on about everything concerning the allopathic medical profession, it is a pleasure engaging in open debate with everyone on this forum. Now, on to the inflammatory commenting. The self-allowed raping of GM by the medical profession secondary to "healthcare" costs is no laughing matter. It would appear as if the healers have raped this "patient" to the point of near insolvency.

Sorry, Okulus, but I am going to have to disagree. I think that the figure was approximately 1K per vehicle for healthcare costs and an additional 1K per vehicle for pension costs. The healthcare beast is conjunction with piss-poor management is responsible for this mess.

The healthcare costs that GM has allowed themselves to be saddled with, in a way, are their own doing. By giving into UAW demands for exorbitant benefits and provider enrichment and by not doing to break the current allopathic healthcare system. The 1K per vehicle cost is significant as yet another strike against GM. Foreign badged auto manufacturers have either wisely stayed out of the domestic manufacturing business (and thus are not subject to the supply side restricted American allopathic healthcare system and its incumbent cost) or for those that do have plants here, have stayed out of the UAW-AMA dog and pony show.

If the brass at GM were serious about saving the company, they (and other big business leaders) would push for revamping the training and delivery systems associated with the American allopathic healthcare system.

Okulus:

Of course there exist problems that are independant of allopathic medicine. Problems with litigation, a double standard on the legal system, the dichotomous standard on reliability and veracity determination of patient/litigant history, junk science "clinical causation" assessment, tax payer raping for enriching the allopathic community, clinician involvement with the anti-smoking/food/etc Nazis, supply side restrictions on the domestic production of providers as a means of limiting competition and keeping salaries of existing providers high, idolatry of the idiot populace regarding allopathic medicine and its providers and the individual/business/societal costs of keeping the current system in place are all areas that I have issues with the allopathic medical community.

Conversely, I have nothing but praise for providers that are competent and capably perform their art. Compensation would not be an issue for me if the system was one in which compensation was based on merit and skill and not on an artificial limitation on the number of providers coupled with legal machinations to limit competition and/or require physician oversight over every aspect of the clinical picture. On the legal side, clinicians that determine "cause" based on the word (veracity) of the litigant dirtbag patients are no better than the clinicians that work for the likes of John Edwards on scientifically unprovable junk science med mal cases. Unless the diagnosis is hallmark and the clinician has the ability to actually evaluate the history independently to determine if it contains the appropriate noxious factor and the degree of exposure (litigant telling you he/she/it was in a 50 mile per hour rear end accident and now has neck pain and denies a prior history of neck pain doesn't even get to first base) then junk science clinical causation testimony should be kept out of all cases.

Try again. Declining reimbursement in no way means that the previous level was acceptable or that the current level is too low. It is simply a trend and not a measure of characterizing the disservice done to the taxpayers. On the domestic terrorism front, I see that the AMA is continuing to run its extortionist advertisements in hopes of scaring the senior citizenry of this country. Finally, I don't care what you tell your worshipers when it comes to managing their personal health issues. When these zealots, however, push to tax my scotch, cigars and pipe tobacco - I hold you responsbile for tweaking their malleable mush filled minds. BTW, "fat taxes" because certain people have no self control is a non-starter as well.

The medical profession is ruining GM? HaHa! You are hilarious! I guess that 10% of medical costs that goes to docors is dong them in, not the 50% worth of administrative costs. I guess it's the doctors fault that GM allows its insurance to be used to be te biggest consumer of Viagra in the world.

lawyersux:

The patients, as you well know, can't prescribe the little blue pill to themselves. The abdicators of the gatekeeping responsibilities, as usual, pass the buck onto someone else. Any semi-aware person thinking of establishing a manufacturing business knows that this country is not the place to do it. Between the dirtbag litigants, the dirtbag PI and MedMal attornies and the dirtbag allopathic providers...

"Your inability to provide a cogent response is duely noted. You might find greater aid and comfort in the land of patient idolatry for their healthcare service providers."

And THAT'S a cogent response?