The Black Hills union. [volume] (Rapid City, Pennington County, Dakota [S.D.]) 1889-1904, 1898-09-23
Rapid CITY BLACK Hils1 South Dakota Friday Sept 23 1898
against invalidity and old age.

against invalidity and old age.
The chief organization for insurance
against sickness is the local sick funds
(Vorts- s-Krankenkassen), incorporated as
sociations of separate industries, man
aged jointly by employers and employ
ed. Premiums for such insurance are
raised by weekly contributions, fixed
according to the requirements of the re-
spective funds and made by employers
and employees in the proportion Of one
to two. Besides these local sick funds
a few other forms Of organization are
permitted. The law makes insurance
obligatory, inasmuch as every working
man becomes member of his respective
association Immediately upon taking up
a certain occupation.
Sickness insurance went into effect at
the end of 1884, and, according to the
first statistical reports of the year 1856,
the total number of beneticiaries was
$500, 600. Ten years later (in lS94) the
number had risen to 1900, 900. The
following benefits are realized from
sickness insurance-viZ, medical treat
ment, medicine and other sickroom sup
plies and weekly cash indemnities
| When patient is treated in a hospital
at the expense of the fund, his family
receives cash assistance At the birth
| of a child cash contribution is given
the mother if she is Il member OF the
association. In case of the death of a
member his family receives fixed sum.
Within the last few years a special
branch for the care of the sick and Of
convalescent patients has been estab-
lishod, legislation quickly sanctioning
this branch of insurance. The total
number of cases of sickness entitled to
the benefit of such insurance was, in
1885, l, 500, 900, and in 1894, 2, 400, 900.
Disbursements covering the cost of sick
ness amounted in 1894 to S25 600, ,OC0
as against only $12,O0O,0O0 in 1885.
Very interesting is the fact that the
thoroughness Of the care Of the sick has
gradually increased. While the average
expense Of a single case amounted to
$6 so in 1885, it rose to $40 i'll 1894.
4 he expenditure for day sickness has
also increased from AZ to 81 cents. In
the first decade the total expenditures
for the cost CT sickness amounted to the
respectable sum of $3.50, ,0O0, 900.
!, Under the influence Of workingmer
/ insurance very much harder race o1
men is growing up. The need for the
sickness insurance law is clearly show1
by the fact that the cause OF the lmpov
erishment of numerous workingmen'
families, in the absence OF such il2sur
ance, is found in their not receiving
5 sufficient assistance during the sickness
f of their hreadwinners, and chat assist
5 ance is usually given them only aftei
, everything the family possessed III saw
ings, furniture tools and clothing ha
been sacrificed for the care of the sicl
; and for the scantiest support. Therefor
with many workingmen serious Ill
: ness results in diminutiOn OF earning
G capacity, If not in total incapacity t.
d earn a living for the rest of their days
Neither should | forget to mention
the beneficial results obtained through
sickness insurance, because Of the time
ly BEGINNING OF the relief it brings ai.'
q because ct it's not ending its care pre-
matureiy. Formerly the 'nlnsure
worklngman sought medical advice cn
X ly in serious cases. and nearly AWAY
t when it was too late. The Worklngnla
v has now become accustomed to the ad
=. vantage of medical advice gratuitousl
placed at his disposal at the slighteS
disturbance of bis health. He stops hi
9 work if necessary and takes it up agai
h only after full recovery.
The second branch Of the insuranc
} for workingmen embraces accident il
surance-i. e., accidents sustalne
while at work. Accident insurance
p carried Oh by trade associations, whic
are corporate societies Of employers
the sane or related branches Of indu
try The expenses of accident insurant
are borne by employers exclusively, N
IN in the form OF fixed contributions. as
the case with sickness insurance, bl
by assessments of annual dues Of Il
individual employers in proportion
the wages paid by them to their mel
en In 1894 the number Of establishment
to subject to this insurance amounted
5000 900 and the number OF III sure
:: persons to Is, 200. 900.
The service OF accident insurance CO
% sists in giving medical treatment, b
., ginning with the fourteenth week tti
IS first IL weeks are provided for by Il
OF sickness insurancel, in granting an a
IS, nulty to Horkinen injured or to the Sc
o. tivors Of those killed by accident, al
o. in paying the funeral expenses of Il
10 victims,
- In 1894 the number Of persons inJur
in insurance paying establishments