The Knoxville independent. [volume] (Knoxville, Tenn.) 1894-current, 1918-04-20
Little Opposition Now Eyinced to
the Policy of General Health
Insurance.
WOULD TEND TO EFFICIENCY
Secretary of New York State Fedora
tion unreservedty In Favor of the
Movement-of Benefit to Employers
and Employees-Is Part of British
Labor Partys Policy.

General health insurance is a social
essential In Europe. Liberals and rad
icals consider 1t part of the alphabet
Of REIMBURSEMENT. The British labor
party incorporated it in It's wide pro-
gram of fundamental change. An in
ternational conference Of labor lead
ers held at Leeds during the second
year of the war termed 1t one of the
essentials Of the new social order.
In previous years health insurance
has been combated In this country by
labor unions and other interests. The
unions felt that their appeal would
be weakened by government insur-
ance. They took the same position
concerning an eight-hour day by law.
They wanted the shorter working day,
but they thought that they must win
1t by Industrial struggle rather than
by legislation. There is reason to sur
mise that the opinion of organized la
Dor and some Of the other groups hith-
ert0 hostile to health insurance Is now
shifting. Soon, perhaps, in many
states the reform will be accepted as
matter of course.
Labor declarations In California
New Jersey and Wisconsin, as well as
the New Workers, now back the health
insurance. The New Workers, more.
over said openly that they regarded
the movement of equal benefit to EN-.
ployers. Thus Secretary Edward
Bates of the New York State Fedora.
ton Of Labor is quoted:
Health insurance, mutually man.
aged and mutually supported at ac-
tual cost, under the supervision of the
state, will be--even more than work
mems compensation is-a benefit to the
employees, and we do not hesitate to
add that If employers will show spir-
1t of cooperation health insurance will
soon be recognized as equally bene-
ficial to industry. We believe, further
more, that most friction resulting in
open hostility between workmen and
their employers might be removed at
tAC 0OuASC IL LACIC WCIC nlOIC just
such opportunities for workmen and
their employers to consult together
over such matters of common interest
as the conservation Of the health and
efficiency of the workers"
So far health insurance has been
pursuing the route marked out by
workmen's compensation measures. At
first these were fought both by labor
and by industry. After time union
labor accepted this state accident in
surance as a cardinal element in its
legislative creed. Then finally business
began to see the economy of the sys-
TEN. At first it was written in OPP
tional forms into the state laws. Final
ly legislators had the courage to make
1t compulsory, and now the federal Su-
preme court has given its sanction to
compulsory state accident insurance.
completing the cycle.
The American Association for Labor
Legislation, which long was one OF
the hackers of the compensation move
ment, Is now furthering the health In
surance campaign. John B. Andrews,
secretary of the association, speaks of
the shockingly high percentage Of
draft reflections on account of phys
ical disability as revelation of the
necessity Of some such system. He
we'll argues that not until general In
surance penalties Ill health will the
full energies of the state be directed
to the prevention of disease.