Fletcher concerned about Ford Motor

FRANKFORT -- Gov. Ernie Fletcher said today he has “great concern” about dismal financial reports from Ford Motor Co. and will ask state legislators to provide training money to safeguard the automaker's two Louisville assembly plants from future plant closures.

Fletcher also said Gene Strong, who is retiring this month as his economic development secretary, will “stay on after he retires” to work on the state’s initiatives for Ford.  “Gene Strong will continue to be part of the effort with Ford Motor Co.,” the governor said.

Ford reported its worst loss in history today -- $5.8 billion in the fourth quarter amid slumping sales and huge restructuring costs, pushing its deficit for the year to $12.7 billion.

“We will be making some recommendations to the General Assembly this year, and we hope that sends a strong message to Ford Motor Co. that we are ready to help them turn the company around and become profitable again,” Fletcher told reporters before speaking at a Kentucky Transportation Conference.

He declined to offer specifics, saying he wants to first know how much extra money there will be in the state budget. 

Fletcher said late last year that the state may finish its fiscal year June 30 with a $279 million surplus. A group of economic forecasters may update that figure Friday.

Training money could be given to Ford if it brings in new technology or refits their products, Fletcher said without elaboration.

Last December, Ford workers at a Louisville plant started production for the new  F-Series Super Duty pickup, which company executives hope will secure the company’s  position in the increasingly competitive truck market. Ford invested $65 million in the truck plant for a new trim line to prepare for assembly of the new truck. The plant employs about 4,800 hourly workers and more than 300 salaried employees.

The two Louisville plants employ nearly 9,000 workers combined. The Louisville Assembly Plant produces the Explorer and Explorer Sport Trac.

Ford has idled or plans to idle several plants in the country, and announced late last year that almost half of its hourly production workers accepted buyouts or early retirement offers.

--Jack Brammer

Comments

[Fletcherite]

This is leadership at its best. All the three wise men (the three dems) think they are cute by making the pardoning issue a red herring. This state needs leadership that deals with real issues as Governor Fletcher is doing, not people that want to create red herrings and live in the past. You talk about an overreaction to a judgement, they want to make a constitutional change on pardoning powers. That is rediculous. Lead on Governor Fletcher, the dem's porch light is on and nobody is home.

[DemforChange]

The only thing that will save Ford - and GM - is single-payer national health insurance. Private health insurance adds $1,500 to the cost of every Ford and GM car - an expense completely avoided in vehicles built in Canada, whose single-payer system is the reason both Ford and GM are doing just fine in Canada.

Private health insurance is destroying American businesses and the U.S. economy.

Single-payer is the only thing that can salvage American capitalism.

[Dr. K]

Demforchange, you need to brush up on your economics. A socialistic health plan would be a disaster for America and Americans. The numbers you quote are true about the added cost to the car, and you are also correct that healthcare is one of the issues hurting the American auto industry. I would add though that it has been brought about by state government policy and not the healthcare market. What do I mean, Please visit this site for more information
http://www.healthwatchusa.org/certificate_of_need.htm

What I mean is that while it may look like private insurance and a free market health system, it is not. We have free market in every aspect of our life other than healthcare. The federal Government passed a policy in the 70's called Certificate of need and all of the states had to employ it. This policy was abolished by the federal government because they found it had an opposite reaction then they had intended. The policy increased prices at a very fast pace. So it was abolished by the Feds. 36 states kept the policy including Kentucky and Michigan. Michigan is worse than Kentucky because of the auto industry and the unions, everyone had health insurance, and because of the non compete policy by the state called Certificate of need, the monopoly hospitals could charge anything they wanted and the insurance companies had to pay. So as a result health insurance premiums have risen out of site. Kentucky has experienced the same issues which is why the state benifit plan is going to go broke. So, in fact with the incredible growth of jobs in the last 25 years, most states had a policy called certificate of need that was actually contrary to what they wanted to accomplish which was good jobs with benifits, but this could not occurr becauses the healthcare costs grew out of reach, thus we have the problem of the uninsured today. To create a single payer system without creating a competitive market place would create an economic bankruptcy. Ask Canada, there system is not as rosy as you think. Simply, all the federal government has to do is make the states abolish the failed policy which the feds abolished 25 years ago. I hope this helps your view on healthcare. The other issue that has killed American companies is workmans comp and high taxes. That is another post.

Dr. K

[facts]

The reason the auto companies are saddled with these legacy costs is because they have let the unions set the cost of employing people instead of the marketplace (e.g. Union employees have single payer, GM, Ford and chrysler). The problem with healthcare isn't single payer it's that efficiency from modern information technology has not been instituted into the system which causes bloat of the administration function. This is unlikely to be fixed with the government in charge. everyone should be required to buy health insurance and the goverment can provide subsidies for those who can't afford it. (and we should audit those who say they can't afford it, buy your kid insurance before you buy that bigscreen)

[DemforChange]

Dr. Ky and facts: We already have two public, single-payer universal health care systems in this country that provide extremely high-quality care for a large number of people spread out across the country.

Both of them operate far more effectively and at far lower cost (3 percent administrative costs compared to 20 percent at private health insurance companies) with far higher client satisfaction.

Veterans Affairs Health Care and Medicare

Go ahead, try to find an independent study that shows private health insurance out-performing either Medicare or VA medicare on any care or administrative factor at all.

It doesn't exist, because private health insurance cannot compete.

[IT man]

If you can't take care of your own house how can you help someone else? The largest employer in the state of Kentucky can't fund it's retirement, provide decent health care insurance or pay it's employees a wage that is better than 25% below surrounding states. That employer is the state of Kentucky.
The state provides little training to it's employees, but, we should provide incentives to a Company who's managemnet is so grossley over paid and provided lavish retirement plans, I think not.

[Dr. K]

Dem For Change:

You must be really bad off if you are going to hold the VA and Medicare up as a gold standard. If you want studies and reports to show you how bad they are, it can be provided. Better yet, just call five veterans from each war and ask them how the VA is taking care of them. That is the healthcare you want and will get with your mentality. The private market is fantastic and could be even better if allowed to compete. Competition will bring the insurance premiums down, not on the current companies but on the new companies that will want to provide competitive rates in a competitive market. I will always take the free market over government any day of the week. The government needs to outsource VA care to the private market, then the veterans could see quality care. The things they go through to get basic care is a scandle in America.

[Dr. K]

Dem For Change,

one more thing and you are correct once again, private health insurance can not compete. I agree with you because Private health insurance has never been allowed to compete due to state policy. State policy is the driving factor in increasing premiums. Premiums have gone up 35% each year for the last 6 years in the state of Kentucky. Private insurance can not compete because it is not allowed. Change the policy and Private insurance and all of healthcare will thrive as will the recipients. I gave you plenty of proof source on that, so it is not my opinion. It will occurr. The problem I see in this election is that we will once again be stuck debating the global disaster facing Kentucky of "Gay Marriage" or "pardoning Powers" That is our greatest threat as Kentuckians to our great commonwealth or that is what our leaders say.

[Kevin T Kavanagh MD]

For more information about the Certificate of Need please go to www.healthwatchusa.org.
Please note I am not the Dr K in posts on this page.
Kevin Kavanagh MD