The Bennington evening banner. (Bennington, Vt.) 19??-1961, 1909-04-09
EENGTHENINo HUMAN LIFE
Life Insurance Men Talking Of
Possible Means.

examination of policyholders every
five years as a means of prolonging
human life was suggested to the AS
ISOLATION of Life Insurance Presidents
this afternoon by DR.. Burnside Fos-
ter, Editor of the St Paul Mimi
Medical Journal and also a life insur-
ance medical examiner Such exam
nations, DR.. Foster declared, would
reveal the incipient stages of unsus-
pected diseases that could be cured
or whose progress could be material
ly retarded, and it would thus be pos
sible to add five, ten or more years
to the average longevity of policy
holders. OF course such examina-
tons could not be made compulsory,
but Dr. Foster thought that the pro.
posed innovation would be welcomed
by policyholders once they realized
the value and significance Of It.
The Life Extension Committee of
the Presidents Association will con
slider DIR. Fosters suggestion. This
committee has already in hand the
proposition of Prof. Irving Fisher of
Yale University that the life com
panies should contribute financial aid
10 campaign of health education.
Prof. Fisher having declared that the
general adoption of hygienic reform
would add fifteen years to the span
OF life in this country.
Modern medicine has. above all
TWO chief aims, the prevention of dis
ease and the recognition of it's earl
lest signs in the individual" said DR..
Foster in today's address In both
OF these aims the business of life in
surance has an immense interest,
since the nearer we approach to their
accomplishment, the more we add to
human longevity. Prof. Fishers re-
cent plea for concerted action on the
part of life insurance companies to
lend their financial aid to the cause
OF preventive medicine is one which
meets with my hearty sympathy and
approval.
Preventive medicine becomes
more nearly an exact science all the
time and while its possibilities are
far from being realized. this is not
because of its own inexactness of
shortcomings but because the people
have not yet awakened to the fact
that those diseases which cause the
greatest number of deaths and the
greatest amount of suffering are act
ually preventable, if money enough
is spent to prevent them. The only
way to enlist all the people actively
Is the crusade against preyentable
disease is TO present the subject as
an economic one, which II surely is
and one which appeals directly to
their pocket-books. am glad that
| life insurance companies are begin
ming to be interested in il from this
point of view. Its study will prove
profitable to them and will AFFORD a
most valuable object lesson to the
people
AS far as their policyholders are
! concerned life insurance companies
have two chief objects in view First
| that every policyholder shall he ply
sically sound when his policy is is
sued, and second that he shall live as
| long and pay as many annual premi
ums as possible These two condi
| lions are also of great Importance to
| The policyholders themselves because
/ a low death rate means a smaller
cost of insurance and also because
| every one wants to live as long as
possible All life insurance compan
! les are careful some more so than
others, 10 see that their risks are care
| fully selected. and on the whole | be
lieve that the medical examinations
/ for life insurance In this country are
| vigorously and honestly made. anC
that the great majority of accepted
/ applicants are sound az the time theu
policies are issued This, Of course
J is as it should be, but SO far as ! knoN.
no effort is made by any life insur
ance company 10 keep in touch with
! the physical condition of its policy
/ holders after their policies are issued
! Life insurance companies will, OF
course admit that anything which
would add five or ten or more years
to the average longevity of their pol
! icyholders, so that they would pay
! inst that many more annual premi
ums, would be an immensely valuable
stroke of business. | believe that this
very thing is possible although, Of
course, | would not go so far as &C
state anything definite as to the aver
age increased longevity that might be
brought about. There is probably no
a physician who has not many times
in his experience detected. while ex
aiming a patient for some other pur
pose, the early signs of some begin
ming organic disease, of which tn,
patient had no suspicion In sucl
cases the early recognition of thu