The Washington times., 1938-12-27
You Boys Better Get Together

You Boys Better Get Together
T LAST we've a report of an argument between
n doctors socalized, colectivized what-you-
ca-it medicine which made sense to laymen de-
bate in which the debating doctors left the
UOCtOTS 50 words lay and talked plain English
Dht The event took place one night last week
at meeting of the Bronx County Medical
Society. The speakers Dr. Charles Gordon Heyd,
past president of the American Medical Association and
DR.. Kingsley Roberts, medical director of the Bureau of
Cooperative Medicine.
DR.. Heyd upheld the so-caled medical indemnity in
plan for spreading medical service around
satisfactorily. This plan is approved by the A. M. A.,
and the New York State Medical Society hopes the 1889
legislature will o. K. it for New York State.
Dr. Roberts spoke for what is called group medical
practice-a type of service which the A. M. A. has just
been charged with illegally obstrucng in antitrust
indictment procured in Washington by the Federal
Government.
Here are brief summaries of the two plans:
Medical indemnity insurance-You buy straight
insurance policy which guarantees that your physicians
bill will be paid up to the policys face value if
WO you need physicians services during life of
DIuno of the policy. Smallest policy to be sold under
present plans, $3.50; premium, 81 month.
You choose your doctor These policies not to be sold
to with incomes of less than $1,000 year. Such
persons to be furnished medical and physicians
services at public expense This plan not to be confused
with the popular SO cents day" hospital insurance
policies which pay ordinary hospital expenses but do not
pay doctors fees.
Group medical practice.-Severa doctors, including
various kinds of specialists get together, and group
offer unlimited medical service to their subscribers The
service is both preventive and curative There
1000 of these groups in business Costs of the
ice average out to about 1920 month per person,
$3.50 month per family of four persons You cannot
choose DOCTOR but must the service of what
doctor in the group is best suited to treat whatever
ails you. Anybody who put up the money SUBJ
scribe The doctors paid fixed salaries.
Well, there have two forms of collectivized med-
cne both invented by doctors themselves rather than
by politicians or social service workers. What inter-
ested us most about the HeydRoberts debate that
each of the two doctors picked
NeLtneT PL0n flaws in the others favorte plan
70 po~fo~t and laymen thought both of
them were probably right.
DR.. Heyd complained that group medical practice
stops the free choice of patients physician,
which most doctors hold to be very precious priv
ege that the fxed-salary feature cut out competition
and thereby is likely to lower quality of medi
cal that the cooperative open to the temptation
to make and money, and therefore to hire
more and mediocre doctors
DR.. Roberts retorted that medical indemnity insur-
ance has these flaws, among others:
stimulates get something back" desire the part
treatment by the ply
sican medical progress; provides
incomplete coverage disregards the necessity for
tive medicine.
AS remarked, both of these doctors to to be
right There are bound to be defects in any form Of
colectivized medicine, in any other human insti
tuition.
But what all the doctors had
Better Agree better bear heavily in mind, we
~ c4L: think is this: That if they don't
" OO'e get together and agree to support
forms of doctor-controed coectivized
medicine the politicians may take the whole play
away from them
The President is expected to lay huge national
health scheme before the coming Congress- 1t is
fact that too many Americans get too little of the med
cal service that is available could be made
available and that more and people coming
to demand adequate medical care as a right.
1t looks if the only choice left to the doctors is
whether to run expanded public health system
to bo hTya