The evening Caledonian. [volume] (St. Johnsbury, Vt.) 1918-1920, 1919-08-02
PLANS FIGHT ON
WHITE PLAGUE
Government to Take Leading
Part in National Program.
$4,000 Rejected FOR ARMY
Figures Revealed in TabuTation Of
Draft Reject Slips Arouses Officials
to Necessity of Taking Vigorous
Action to Stamp Out Tuberculosis
Over Million Active Cases in Coun-
try--t5o,oco Deaths a Year.

Alarmed by the loss Of man power
caused by tuberculosis during the
war, Uncle Sam is polishing up the
NJ. D., which is among the many let
tiers that follow his name, and prepar-
ing to take a leading part in the ma
tional program for The prevention of
the disease.
Final tabulation Of the draft reject
slips, just completed, reveals: Sixty
two thousand men were rejected when
called for service in the National army
because medical examination showed
they had tuberculosis.
Another 10000 men were discharged
at army camps for the same reason.
Six thousand, still in service, are
now being cared for in the army's
special tuberculosis hospitals.
AS these figures show, the govern
ment, at a time of great national
emergency, was robbed of the services
of approximately enough men for five
army divisions by the ravages of this
one disease. But this is not all, for,
although progress has been made in
the control of the disease during the
last ten years, it still is the cause Of
/ 10000 deaths annually in this coun-
! try, and as scientific investigation has
shown, for every death from the dis
case there are eight active cases.
100000 Gases in United States.
This indicates that at the present
time there are in the United States at
least 100000 active cases Of the
white plague.
At the annual meeting of the Ma
tional Tuberculosis association in At
lantic City, June IA to II, federal,
state and local public health authori-
ties outlined a coordinate national
| plan of battle against the disease.
| One result of this, it is expected, will
be the creation of a division of tuber-
culosis in the United States public
health service, a bill for which will
soon be introduced.
Already, as the governments first
step in protecting the nations health
during the reconstruction era, the
United States public health service
has been authorized to provide free
hospital care for soldiers and sailors
suffering from tuberculosis, honorably
i discharged on or after October 6, 1917.
These patients will be treated in gov
eminent sanitariums.
Caring for $4,000 Sufferers.
The even graver problem of caring
| for the $4,000 sufferers who were
: turned back into civil life by the draft
| boards has been assumed by the Ma
tional tuberculosis association in CO.
! operation with the surgeon generals
Office, through 1900 state and local
societies which are affiliated with the
national association, and some 600
sanitariums and 500 dispensaries are
already available for the work.
The situation is so serious, how
ever, that the national program calls
| for hospital and sanitarium provision
| in every state in the Union that will
provide, as a minimum, at least two
beds for every annual death, as well
as dispensary and clinic care so that
every man, woman and child In the
:, state who has tuberculosis, or thinks
he has it, or who may have been ex-
posed to it in any way, can secure free
advice and treatment or treatment at
moderate expenses.