While not much has been written here about GM's plan to turn over responsibility for its employees' health care, I thought this article provided an interesting overview of the situation. Of particular interest is the argument that this deal is essentially a statement by, that, "No, we don't think there will be a national solution, so we're going to cut our own deal."

So, how does the deal stack up from a free market perspective? First and foremost, the unions don't have to disclose how this money is spent. That is troubling; The deal includes a $4.4 billion note that if converted into stock would give the UAW a 17% equity stake in GM; There is nothing to guard against the union putting this money in risky investments and thus losing it all, only to be bailed out by...?; and lastly, GM agreed to spend up to $15 million over the next few years to create a National Institute for Health Care Reform. While the conclusions of this new think tank's research are up for debate, I believe it will be nothing more than a vehicle for nationalized health care.

So, while there is little that could be done about this deal, there is certainly a lot to keep an eye on. There is no doubt that VEBA's are going to be pushed hard in future union/company contract talks.