Evening star., 1938-12-20
Grand Jury |ndicts 21 Doctors,
National and D. G.. Associations
As Vio|otors Of Anti Trust Act
Group Health Fight
Forms Busis for
Charges
By HAROLD b. ROGERS.
Tert OF Indictment on Page A-S.


BY HAROLD b. ROGERS.
Charging combination and con-
spiracy in restraint of trade" a Fed
eral grand jury today returned in
dictments in District Court against
the American Medical Association,
the Medical Society of the District
of Columbia, the Washington Acad-
emy of Surgery of this city, the
Harris County Medical Society of
Houston, Tex, and 81 physicians of
Chicago and Washington on charges
of violation of the Sherman Anti
Trust Act.
The indictments are based prin-
cipally on alleged acts of the de-
PENDANTS directed against Group
Health Association, Inc, of this
city, medical cooperative of Gov-
ernment workers.
List of Defendants.
The defendants include:
. From the American Medical Asso-
citation: DR.. Morris Fishbein, editor
of the Journal of the American
Medical Association; Dr. Olin West,
secretary and general manager; DR..
William Creighton Woodward, di-
rector of the Bureau of Legal Medi-
cine and Legislation; DR.. William
Dick Cutter, secretary of the Council
on Medical Education and Hospitals;
DR.. Roscoe Genung Leland, director
of the Beurau of Medical Economics.
From the Medical Society of the
District of Columbia. these officers
and former officers: DR.. Arthur Car
isle Christie, DR.. Coursen Baxter
Conklin, DR.. James Bayard Gregg
Custis, DR.. Thomas Allen Grower,
DR.. Robert Arthur Hooe, DR. Leon
Alphonse Martel, DR.. Thomas Err
nest Mattingly, DR.. Francis Xavier
McGovern, DR.. Thomas Edwin Neill,
Dr.. Edward Hiram Reede, DR.. Will
liam Mercer Sprigg. Dr. William
Joseph Stanton, DR.. John Ogle War
field, jr.:: DR.. Prentiss Wilson, DR..
Wallace Mason Yater and DR.. Joseph
Rogers Young.
A. NJ. A. to Fight Back.
The A. M. A. will defend the case
to the limit" according to DR.. Fish
bein, In statement at Chicago to
the Associated Press. The House
OF Delegates he said, has author
lied the Board of Directors of the
American Medical Association to de-
fend the case to the limit"
George p. Hoover, counsel for the
. District Medical Society, said he had
not yet had time to study the in
dictment and would issue no state
ment until after he had given the
document careful consideration
The Medical Society has already
stoutly protested in court, however,
that the Sherman Act cannot be
applied to its members because they
are not In trade" but are members
of learned profession"
In explaining why the indictments
were returned, the 27-page docu-
ment names II Washington hos
pitfalls, but it is carefully explained
that the hospitals themselves were
not made defendants Organized
medicine was charged with putting
pressure against Group Health As
sociation through influence in the
hospitals. Defendants also are
charged with restraining the hos
pitals. The institutions include all
OF the hospitals in the District not
operated by the Government.
They are: Central Dispensary and
Emergency Hospital, Children's Hos
pital Columbia, Casualty, Episcopal
Eye, Ear and Throat; Garfield,
Georgetown University, George
Washington University. Homeo-
pathic, Providence, Sibley Memorial
and Washington Sanitarium and
Hospital.
Five Specific Charges.
The conspiracy ana combination
. In restraint of trade began Jan
uary, 1887, or shortly thereafter, -
the indictment declares. Five spe-
cific charges are laid to the defend
ants in operating their alleged re-
straint of trade. These are:
"O For the purpose of restrain
ing Group Health Association, Inc,
In It's. business OF arranging for the
provision of medical care and hos
pitaliZation to its members and their
dependents on a risk sharing pre-
payment basis;
"(2) For the purpose of restrain
ing the members of Group Health
Association, Inc, in obtaining by
cooperative efforts, adequate medi-
cal care for themselves and their
dependents from doctors engaged in
group medical practice on a risk
sharing prepayment basis;
"(3 For the purpose of restrain
mg the doctors serving on the med
ical staff of said Group Health As
soclatlon, Inc, in the pursuit of their
callings;
90 For the purpose of restrain
Ing doctors mot on the medical staff
of Group Health Association, Inc.)
practicing in the District of Colum-
bia, including the doctors so prac-
ticing who are made defendants
herein, in the pursuit of their call
lngs;
"(O For the purpose of restrain
ing the Washington hospitals in