Evening star., 1923-01-19
WOULD CENTER US.
HOSPITAL CONTROL
Secretary Mellon to Trans
NIT Report Urging New
Federal Board.

various departmental authorities op-
Grating federal hospitals in different
parts of the country under one cen
traI responsible head will probably
be recommended to Congress before
the end of this short session, IT has
been learned.
Secretary of the Treasury Mellon
it is understood, is planning to trans
NIT a special report beng drawn b.
DR.. W. A. White. chairman OF tne
Treasury consultants on hospitaltza-
tion. which will propose fedora!
plan for disqualification"
AT present the government is op-
Grating hospitals scattered all over
the United States. under numerous
and disassociated controls. including
the Army, Navy. public health, In
terror Department, Veterans Bureau
and others.
Central Control Urged.
These authorities should be cen
traliZed according to the report be
ing prepared by DIR. White and his
committee Of eminent physicians and
surgeons. who have served the gov
ernment without pay. A federal plan
for disqualification should be carried
forward not only with an eye to the
present. but TO the future, the re
port will point out, taking into con
sideration the need for old soldiers
homes az veterans of the world war
grow old, and the possible need for
marine hospitals in case the projectea
American merchant marine develop
as expected.
The idea of such a federal plan
approved by Brig Gen. Charles T.
Sawyer, chief co-ordinator of TIN
Federal Board of capitalization. This
board, while performing some of th'
functions Of d central head for thr
various hospital agencies of the gov
ernment, does not have enough pow
er. it has been pointed out, to hand
program Of widespread control a.
it was appointed by executive order
and lacks sufficient Legislative en-
abling authority.
One of the difficulties in admins
tering the present hospital progran
ed out in circles close to the board.
has been the zeal of the yarioUs
heads TO forward their own particuias
organizations.
The Federal Board Of Hospitaliza
tiou which acts as official adviser t.
the President in all hospital prob
lens. consists Of the present official
in charge of the disassociated cor
trolls, as follows: Brig. Gen. Sawyc'--
chief co -ordindtor; Col. Charles 7.
Forbes director or the Veterans Bu-
reau; DR. w A. White. chairman !"
the Treasury consultants; Surgeo3
General ireland Of the United State
Army. Surgeon General Stitt Of tho
=
Cumming of the public health service
Gen. George II. Wood Of the Natioua'
Homes for Disabled Volunteer Sol
diers and Charles VI. Burke commits
sioner Of Indian affairs.
The White committee report on =
comprehensive federal plan will lot
only outline, in general. what such
reorganization would be able to d"
for the future Of the government hos
pitfalls and government beneticiaries
of all kinds, but viii be backed by
great mass of documentary eyidencr
collected by the committee in its eN-
tensive study OF the problem sine
March. 1S@1. when il was appointed Ia
secretary Of the Treasury Mellon
building of Hospitals.
The report will give statement
the hospitals built by the committee
in cooperation with the supervisin&
architects office, under Assistant Sec
retary of the Treasury Clifford. in IN.
construction of which the commIttC~
expended SIS, 10000 appropriated IL
der the so-caIled first Langley bill
A preliminary report OF hospital con-
Struction was circulated yesterday ~
Col Clifford among members of tht
Senate and House committees on pun
lie buildings and grounds.
But the part of the White repoT
bearing more directly on the problem
of a federal DECENTRALIZATION plan WI
include the studies which the COZ
sultants made preliminary to givln-
their advice on the location, site anC
character Of these hospitals.
These stusiits, Secretary MellOu
said, ''indcatt = method OF approacn
ro d problcn which had never been
faced by any government beioft.
that is. the longtime hosDitaliza
tion of eX-suidierS Tor diseases COT
tracted during their service
Secretary Mellon predicted ther,
would also be included charts show
ing the distribution of population
the general relation Of drafted mel
TO population, the number of disable"
men that may he expected from III.
age group drafted into the Army
and from diseases acknowledged as
traceable 10 service. the present
equipment in the way of hospitals IL
the United States. with analysis by
district and state. the prospective
future hospital demand. an analysis
Of transportation facilities. the rela-
tion of hospital care TO domiciliarE
care, the number of beds of different
types required. the standard floor
plans of modern types of building
with elevations OF finished structure
ETC. the future use of these hospitals
and the relation of these studies t.
the attempted federal plan for hos
pitalization on which tie work OF
the future may be based
seeks Aid of States.
Federal concentration of control vii!
not be the only. recommendation, il IS
learned, but the committee will alsC
propose that the government enlisl
the cooperation Of the states in the
problem OF disqualification with view
to each helping the other.
Files of the committee indicate thaL
the answers OF the governors wer,
unanimous. Reports were turned into
the committee by the governors, Civ
ing full account of the entire state
hospital facilities throughout the ma
tion. and each governor indicated he
would be glad to attend a conference
to study the problem of state and
federal cooperation.