The more I hear from politicians, academics, and insurance company representatives about the need to reform health care, the more I wonder what actual patients and their doctors think.

Actually, I don't wonder, I think I know.

I take care of patients on a day-to-day basis and I interact with practicing doctors rather than bureaucrats. And I can tell you, there are a lot of disgruntled folks out there who don't believe that President Obama has the miracle cure to our health-care problems.

Doctors are already fed up with insurances, public and private, and are leaving it by droves. Patients are already sick of long waiting lines in doctors’ offices, and of defensive interventional care administered by rushed paper-pushers who are afraid of lawsuits.

Primary-care doctors don't believe that national health insurance will give them more time to see their patients with less paperwork and higher reimbursements or more control -- in fact, they believe just the opposite, which is why only 2% of medical-school graduates choose primary care as a profession. Surgeons are already complaining that after long years of training to a high skill level, their reimbursements for long operations are being cut.

So why don't we doctors organize and fight the changes, when all they will do is flood us with more patients we don't have the time or resources to take care of properly?

One answer is that few of us believe that the American Medical Association can properly represent our concerns. A second answer is that we are too busy to band together. A third reason is that too many of us are afraid to stand up, for fear of being signaled out.

But that's just my opinion.

What is your opinion?

Doctors out there, patients out there, speak up and tell us what your worries are about the sweeping changes in health insurance that President Obama is trying to make a reality.

Write back to us here with your opinions and insights. There is still time for doctors to fight back before we are swept under the bus.

Marc Siegel, MD
Fox News Medical Contributor

You wouldn't know that from many of the on-camera interviews we have done here at the Consumer Electronics Show, where attendance is down by 8% from last year (presumably because of the slowing economy). Despite that, executive after executive has shown up at our location to tell us that demand for their product is holding up pretty well. It must be the other guy.

Yet, when the conversation is not on-camera (off the record or on "background" is the term we journalists use), the outlook is not always so positive. Executives, lower level employees and industry analysts all concede that the environment is a very difficult one to operate in.

How do we know it's so difficult? Nobody seems to know how much to charge for things. I've been asking the question, "How much does this cost?" And the answer has, more often than not, been "we're not sure yet." The reason they're not sure is they have no idea what the pricing environment is going to be like when these products hit the market in six months.

So are things really holding up relatively well? They are -- here in the spin zone, anyway.

-Connell

Unlike Apple's (AAPL) iPhone, you can remove the back and replace the battery. This is being referred to as Palm's "Hail Mary pass" to get back in the game as it tries to compete with the likes of Apple and Research In Motion (RIMM).

It's not just the new phone, it's the operating system (called NOVA) that goes along with it. This system has been delayed a number of times, and many analysts are skeptical about its ability to compete with AAPL and RIMM.At the presentation here in the Venetian, Palm CEO Ed Colligan and other company officials have been stressing synergy. For example, if you're instant messaging a friend and want to turn that I'm into a text, it's easy to do from one screen.

It has a slide-out real keyboard, not just virtual--clearly aimed at the happy medium for Blackberry and iPhone enthusiasts. It's smaller than other smart-phones although it looks a little thicker.

All of these innovations are getting a lot of reaction here in the room, but it's way too early to call the Pre the next big thing.

Check out my interview with Palm CEO Ed Colligan tomorrow at 6:40am Eastern time on FOX Business Network.

-Connell

There is no shortage of companies here trying to sell you on the hottest new gadget, but there seems to be a real shortage of buyers to scoop them up.

Where's Wal-Mart (WMT)? How about Best Buy (BBY)? Those are the companies who usually send representatives here to find the newest gadgets to sell in their stores. From what I'm hearing, those are the no-shows this year. And that's not good news for the consumer electronics industry.

-Connell

We stopped by one of the off-site events before the official kickoff of the Consumer Electronics Show here in Las Vegas. It's called Digital Experience, and all the big players were there -- Sony (SNE), LG, Research In Motion (RIMM), etc.

After talking to a number of the exhibitors, one thing became pretty clear: This year's show is not about 100-inch plasma screens -- it's about $400 Netbooks. The smaller, less-expensive items are taking center stage here.

Click here for complete coverage of the 2009 Consumer Electronics Show

The slowing economy also means there are fewer people here at the show. That dawned on me at the airport, where the line for a cab didn't stretch for miles like it did last year.

We have a big day of coverage planned Thursday -- with plenty of CEO guests and hot gadgets. And please, don't miss our LIVE Webcast at 1 p.m Eastern time here on www.foxbusiness.com

-Connell

We want to know how you feel about the proposed loan to the Big 3. Where do we draw the line? Is enough enough and they should be allowed to fail? Or will too many jobs be lost and further sink our economy? Weigh In!

[Democrats in roman; Republicans in italic; Independents underlined]
H R 7321 RECORDED VOTE 10-Dec-2008 8:46 PM
QUESTION: On Passage
BILL TITLE: Auto Industry Financing and Restructuring Act

---- AYES 237 ---

---- NOES 170 ---

---- ANSWERED “PRESENT” 1 ---

---- NOT VOTING 26 ---