Yep, health-care and retiree costs of the Japanese and European automakers are subsidized by their governments, among other things. Think of this as leveling the playing field a bit against foreign competition.
And yes, the Big 3 package in question is not a "bailout" but a "loan guarantee," program which is exactly what Chrysler CEO Lee Iacocca negotiated from the gov. in 1979. The loans were paid back with interest to the taxpayers and ahead of their due date.