The Birmingham age-herald. [volume] (Birmingham, Ala.) 1902-1950, 1916-07-29
Health Department Claims
Physician Derelict in
Reporting Case
PUBLIC INDIFFERENT
TO THE CONDITIONS
DIR. Carol Fox States That Statistics
Show a tuberculosis Epidemic in
Birmingham District and Points
Out Gravity of the Situation

Although it was reported that there
July /. 1915, to July l, 1916, investiga-
ton disclosed at the health offices yes
terday afternoon of an additional 81
deaths from tuberculosis, other than
the lungs, which brought the grand
total of deaths for the year ending
July 1, from the great white plague
to 356, number which appalled, DIR.
Carroll Fox. the United States health
expert now engaged in research work
in Birmingham.
Other figures brought out yesterday
by Statistician w. A. Reynolds of the
health department were of So deaths
from pellargra for the year ending
July /.
In regard to pellagra it was stated
that the rate of mortality was very
high as the records of the health de-
partment showed that only 10 cases of
pellagra were reported from July l.
1915, to July 1, 1916, and yet So deaths
from pellagra are on the records Of
ficials of the health department stated
that this was due to the fact that doc
orts were not reporting cases of in
efctious diseases. In this connection
Chief Sanitary Inspector w. C. Burson
announces that the city commission
passed an ordinance on Thursday aft
efnoon making it a violation of the law
for doctors to omit the immediate re-
porting to the health department OF
cases of infectious diseases.
In the tuberculosis cases the doctors
reported a little ahead of the deaths
as 534 cases were reported for the year
ending July /.
HIGH PERCENTAGE
In both diseases tuberculosis and
pellagra the percentage of deaths was
between 70 and 80 per cent negroes
OF the cases of lung tuberculosis, of
which there were 294 deaths, only IS
were of white persons.
Regarding the local health situation
DIR. Carroll Fox was not at all en-
thusiastic He calmly stated that there
was a tuberculosis epidemic in this To-
cality as evidenced by the high death
rate. He said these facts should cause
a great deal of concern with both the
public and city officials as it marked
a grave state of affairs
1.-TWO hundred and ninety-four deaths
from lung tuberculosis for the year
ending July l." said DIR. Fox, sis a
matter to cause grave alarm amongst
ficials of the civic government and the
board of health, and 1t is also a state
of affairs that should be given the
widest publicity as it's very existence
is due to the lack of public knowledge
that such a condition of affairs exist
in Birmingham.
PUBLIC INDIFFERENT
"If those deaths had occurred from
bubonic plague, or yellow fever or
smallpox during the same IL months
there would have been a great outcry
and definite steps would have been
taken to remove the causes. The trou-
BILE with the public is that they take
tuberculosis for granted and think
nothing of it. No special steps are
taken therefore to remove causes and
put into force measures of preven-
ton"
Health officer DIR. Cecil d. CASTOR
also stated that the public were rather
Indifferent of health matters and that
only when reports came in of infantile
paralysis or of smallpox was there any
alarm and any attempt made to pre-
vent the spread of diseases.
Red mountain camp Nigh be damned
full of tubercular patients" said DR..
CASTOR, land it would not excite any
alarm amongst anyone. 1t would just
be taken for granted. Such indiffer-
ence is dangerous, and what is needed
is thorough awakening that Birming-
ham is far from being a healthy city
at the present time"