The American issue. [volume] (Westerville, Ohio) 1912-19??, 1922-06-16
STAND PAT ON MEDICAL
PROPERTIES OF ALCOHOL
Health Destroyers Didn't Get
Look In" With Practitioners
Of Healing Art
A. M. A. NOT FOR SALE
Booze Resolution Died Peace
fully in Committee. of Com
plication of Diseases

Some years ago the American Med
ical Association declared alcohol to
be without therapeutic value. Ever
since then the liquor interests have
tried to bring about reversal OF that
declaration. A year ago it was tried
but referred without action. At the
sessions of the Association just con-
cluded last week in St. Louis it was
attempted again but without success.
The question was debated carefully in
the House of Delegates of the Asso-
citation but the only result of their
deliberations was the reference of
them all to the Council on Scientific
Assembly.
The members of the Council after
careful discussion approved the fol-
lowing declaration viz, That the
subjects discussed in the preamble
and resolutions involved scientific
problems which have for long per-
iod of time been the subjects Of study
by competent scientific investigators;
that notwithstanding these investiga-
tons there is no definite generally ac-
cepted conclusion on these questions.
The Council deems it unwise to at
tempt to determine moot scientific
questions by resolution or by vote
and recommends that under the con-
ditions cited the House of Delegates
shall take no action "a this time on
the question of the therapeutic value
of alcohol In making this recon-
mendation the Council calls attention
to the fact that it has not taken into
consideration nor do its recommends
tons apply to any of the social,
economic or moral issues which are
involved in or allied to the scientific
problem presented-the determine
ton of the therapeutic value of al
coho1."
The Association however did rec
ommend government sale of medi-
cinal liquor. In commenting upon
this action, General Counsel w. B.
Wheeler of the Anti-Saloon League
of America said that in his opinion
the proposition had some merit in
it,
THE experience of the few states
however that attempted to take over
the sale and manufacture of liquor is
not very reassuring," continued Mr..
Wheeler. ut will depend upon the
kind of method outlined in the law
and the enforcement procedure to de-
termine its value. The regulation for
securing medicinal whisky in small
quantities is a good one. This can
be accomplished by regulations under
the law as it is.
"The complaints thus far raised
against the distribution of medicinal
liquor have been against the regula-
tons and not against the law. If
any of these are unreasonable the de-
partment will doubtless modify them.
THE regulations or restrictions in
the national Prohibition act itself are
less severe than in most of the state
Prohibition laws. 1t would not re-
lease doctors from these regulations
even il the federal act was amended
or repealed.
UNLESS medicinal liquor is regulated
it will serve as the means to dispense
liquor for beverage purposes by the
prescription route. Only about one
doctor in FIVE dispenses whisky as a
medicine.
There is no inclination on the part
of the Anti-Saloon League forces to
make these regulations unnecessarily
burdensome but there must be reason
able regulations or the law will be
farce"