New-York tribune., 1919-04-21
Postponed, Not Beaten

The health insurance bill has not been
killed; its enactment has merely been
postponed. Speaker Sweet may not
know this, but he will. A Legislature
will assemble at Albany that will pass
measure demanded by both social JUS
tce and social economy.
Consider what it means that the tuber-
culosis rate of industrial workers is
double that of the normal. We are not
able to trace the causes in every case,
but we know that the factory life, which
is an incident of modern civilization, in
some way is responsible for half of the
ravages Of the white plague. SO also as
to other diseases
Society now takes, but does not pay.
1t asks men and women to do hazardous
work and lodges the bill. 1t sends to the
victim no nurse, no bottle Of medicine,
no healing service. If the blood Of the
workman, shed in inevitable accidents,
is to he rated one Of the costs Of indus
try, so should be the burdens Of indus
enRehdered disease. Here is man
date Of the simplest Justice.
Consldet also. what 1t means that IT,
100000 tneh and women, more than we're
wounded in the great Wat, arc incapaej.
fnled bY illness for SONS portion Of ihe
year irobabIy half of the subtraction
from productive industry Is nVoidable.
The whole Of the ethte budget now giving
concern could be- saved out Of the wenlth
that we could produce but do not Or
RnnIzed society also lacks intelligence.
Health insurance, the great preventive,
as Is shown In every country using it,
Wlll more than meet its costs.
In regard to the soundncss Of the
principle back Of health insurance, the
United States Supreme Court, sustain
ing the New York workmen's compcn-
saton statute, says: "Thc loss Of earn
ing power through injury to the work
mani is a loss arising out of the bust
ness and, however it may be charged up,
is an expense Of the operation as truly
as the cost of repairing broken ma
chlnery or any other expense that ordi-
narily is borne by the employer"
The causes Of sickness are more COM
plicated than the causes Of accident, and
1T would be unfair to put the whole bur-
den upon the public. SO the bill at AL
bany stipulated that if the employees
illness is shown to be due to bad living
conditions or to bad personal habits, the
benefit may not accrue. To charge to
the public half of the cost of illness
approximates to strict equity
As a preventive measure workmen's
compensation has been most effective.
Since the New York act went into ef-
feet many employers have cut down a
third or half the roll Of accidents for
mcrly regarded as inevitable. j. d.
Beck, Of the Wisconsin Industrial Com
mission, says moro progress in accident
prevention was made in his state in the
hrst year Of workmen's compensation
than IN any previous period of five
years. There is every reason to believe
health insurance viii have as great an
effect in promoting health
The men at Albany who have post
pohcd the great blessings are not bad;
they are merely ignorant They are Of
the element which society has always
been compelled to struggle with as it
has labored upward. But now, as be-
fore, these torpid intclligenccs will vet
be quickcncd. A great and good change
will come, and it will then be a matter Of
wonder that any we're so stupid as not
to sec.