Evening star., 1932-06-12

tasteful to self-respecting people and
is too erratic and inadequate to meet
such large national problem. In such
cases. can the local and perhaps the
State government be expected to meet
a sufficient share of the cost to bring
the charge to individual families with
in their reach? Will local officials
agree that the protection of the peo-
pies health is as important, although
not as costly a social responsibility as
the education of their minds? Can
able the local government to help carry
the financial burden without placing
the morte main of official red tape or
politics on scientific progress and
skilled service?
The important thing is that tre-
mendouS ferment is working in our
medical system. Both doctors and lay
men are reaching out in various direc-
tions to find methods of leveling the
cost of medical service and of provid-
ing a better quality of care than has
previously been available. Where this
evolution viii take us. we know not.
That it contains dangerous as well as
hopeful possibilities is apparent.
Europe ADOPTS Sickness Insurance.
OF course one of the first solutions
suggested is that the Federal Govern
ment should provide medical care to
all citizens free Of charge. In many
other parts OF the world this is being
done. Most Of the countries of Eu-
rope have adopted some form of gov
ernmentally supervised sickness insur-
ance, voluntary in few instances and
compulsory In the rest. and the peo-
pie now look to their central govern
ments to protect them against the
hazards of sickness
In the United States the situation Is
different. In spite of the vast con-
centrationS of power and authority now
in Washington and the growing and
dangerous tendency of the people to
turn to the Capitol for sll necessary
reforms. we have retained a healthy
local responsibility and control over two
important functions-education and
medical service
With no central authority attempting
to force uniformity of action on all
parts of the country We can try out
a great variety of plans. II State
action is necessary, We have 48 labora-
tories in which to find out what action
is most effective: if city or county
action is called for. We have several
thousand experiment stations" We
have no tradition that impeis us to
consider health matters as a Federal
concern.
But the arm of the Government.
particularly in the domain of hospitals,
is becoming more powerful each year,
and presents serious threat to the
orderly development of health educa-
ton. In the United States, there Is
three billions of dollars of capital in
vested in hospitals alone and We are
spending two hundred millions a year
for construction. Broadly speaking. the
public owns the hospitals. AS group,
it is impossible for them to succeed as
ordinary business institutions. Only
certain private hospitals that are
specially favored can operate with some
small profit. The advance of medicine
with Its many new requirements of
facilities and equipment and the wear
ing out OF materials. compels most
hospitals either to be replaced or re-
modelled every 25 or SO years As
business, the ordinary hospital Is
failure. AS an instrument of human
service, it is a striking success.
Institutions Increase.
Recent economic changes have
brought us up with a sharp Start to
realize that the indispensable hospital
stands row financially in botween the
patient and the doctor and that some
system Of handling both the operation
of the hospital and of medicine is re-
quired if we are to maintain the best
that the medical profession has to
offer to us all
There has been marked increase in
the number of institutions for the care
of the sick, including the insane, built
and operated by the various units of
the Federal Government. AS long as
these buildings were constructed bv
cities, counties and States, and were
handled in consonance with local condi-
tions, the situation was sound and its
growth was in the right direction
But among the other problems
brought to us by the Great War was
that OF the medical care of those of
Our men who we're injured in battle or
who became diseased while in service.
Without the war we would undoubtedly
nave gone along as We had in the
past. developing our hospitals in the
usual way and gradually increasing the
governmental care of the sick INDECENT
The impulse OF our people to do every
thing that was possible for those who
had offered their lives in the service of
their country was directed into the
construction of new hospitals for veter-
ans IN various parts OF the country.
Along with this there arose a bureau
cratic organization for the care of the
problems Of veterans, including their
medical care.
Problem of War Veterans.
The direct relationship of the soldier
to the country which he has served
projected the Federal Government into
this field. With the enormous wealth
at hand. there was an eXuberant mush- !
room growth Of veterans hospitals. !
and as exuberent a growth CT legisla- I
tion. opening the doors OF these hos
pltals to more and more classes of
patients. At the present time these
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