The Bridgeport evening farmer., 1915-10-21
LLOYD GEORGES
 CRITICS DECLARE
 fl TOLD YOU so"
Failure of Insurance Act Only Hastened By War,
 They Now Assert.

London, Oct 2O.-The partial breakdown of the machinery of Lloyd Georges famous Insurance Act for protecting the working classes against illness and unemployment is one of the incidents of the upheaval of f- nancia1 conditions caused by the war. This scheme, with the old age pen sions act, also linked with the name of the former Chancellor of the Exchequer, constituted the most inn portant part of the program for so- cia1 reform fathered by the Liberal party. Both schemes were patterned upon the German system. The in surance act came into effect on the first of May. 1912, and the organiza- ton for it's working had hardly been perfected when the war began.
 Hostile critics of the plan predict ed from the beginning that it would prove failure. They now declare that the war has only hastened the inevitable development, while the sup porters lay the blame upon war con- ditions. Handel Booth. M. F., pre- siding at a meeting of insurance ex- perts this week, declared that the po- sition of the act is critical, and oth- CTS urged that parliament pass an emergency bill to amend it. Prospec- tive beneficiaries fear that this will mean a reduction of the benefits they were promised in return for their compulsory contributions.
 The employment of a great host of officials, and a. huge staff of doctors. together with complications caused by the participation of benefit societies and industrial insurance companies, are held to be the principal causes for the failure of contributions and promis ised benefits to balance Four separate commissions, one for each of the four kingdoms and each with a | joint committee, were created for the administration of the act. The salaries of officials alone consumed $2S5OO,O 900 per year; office rentals and stationery expenses also have eaten up a con siderable percentage of income. Re trenchrnent in these items is the first measure of reform considered, and the anaIgamation of the English, Scottish and Welsh commissions is proposed.
 On it's payment side the Insurance Act provided for contributions of eighteen cents per week for all per sons earning s3.75 or less. Of this the workman or woman, paid eight cents, the employed six cents and the state four cents. Free medical at tendance at all times, allowance during sickness of $2.50 per week for men and $1.75 for women for the first three months, and five shillings for
 
 principal benefits. while maternity allowance of thirty shil1ings for the
 mother of each child born was popular feature.
 The simple reason for the failure of the great enterprise to meet the ex- pctations of it's sanguine promoters is | that expenses have far exceeded the original estimates. The building of sanatoria for consumptives at cost of $7,5OO,00O, was an important fea-- ture which has not been realized be- cause of lack of funds to build. The doctors of the United Kingdom have proftted greatly through the Insur- ance Act, according to popular belief l In the beginning there was a dead lock between the government and the British Medical Association over the terms of payment to the official phy- | sicians- Those chosen were to have several hundred people accredited to them, at an annual rate of $1.5O per
 person including drugs to be furnish gave the doctors a maximum of $2.25 per possible patient The estimates of the total cost of medical attetion under the act were about $S,000,00O
 for 14, 100000 per sons, but the actual
 results are not known
 Before the Insurance Act came in to force newly fledged doctors thought theyselves fortunate if they could
 earn from $75O to $1,O0O by assisting
 old practitioners, and for this they were expected to work very long hours Under the act many young men are credited with earning from 1 $5,O0O to $7,OOO, the fortunate ones being ,sthose whose surgeries are sit uated in the poorer classes and work ing class districts. The doctors have a strong counter balancing grievance in the slowness of the governm lent to
 pay them. Most of the accounts for the year 1914 have not been settled