It's a little scary. Our employees deserve annual increases in salaries. We have new technologies and new surgical procedures. But the costs are rising at a faster rate than the reimbursement.

It's still an issue for us. For some specialties, going elsewhere in the country could mean a salary 30 to 40 percent higher and buying a house that costs one-third as much.

The medical profession has proved to be a source of stable income for nurses. I think people are moving in that direction, where five years ago they would have gone to work for a dot-com company.

We cover 80 percent of the cost for single employees.

We think it's wise to ensure that our employees, retirees and investors are well-represented when there are issues that are discussed that affect them.

It's 5,000 (employees) this year, but it could be 50 next year. This is the wrong way to go.