The people's voice. [volume] (Helena, Mont.) 1939-1969, 1944-06-30

1t it were charged, more correctly, that
the bill proposs to make medical serv
ices more nearly social medicine
than they are today, that charge would
be valid and would be a compliment
to the bill.
the journal of the American Medical
Association, health conditions and
standards of medical service are high
err in the United States than anywhere
else in the world, why is change
necessary?
DR.. Fishbein presents a very favor
able overall picture. He neglects to
state that conditions are not nearly so
satisfactory in poor agricultural states,
in rural regions of wealthy states and
in low-income sections of our large
cities, as national statistics Indicate
Take, for example, infant and ma
ternal mortality rates. In 1871, while
45 babies in the entire United States
died at birth for every 1000 born alive,
in the South the rate was So. The rate
for mothers who died in childbirth was
so per cent higher in the South than
in New England.
The National Physicians Committee
pamphlet says that if the recommen-
dations of the bill are enacted, "they
will destroy the private practice of
medicine in the United States"
This statement is not true. If the
bill is enacted, physicians will con-
tinue to practice medicine much as
they do now. They will have the
choice of practicing full time under
the insurance system, of combining
care of patients paid for by insurance
with care of uninsured patients and of
those who prefer to pay for their care
(that is, without making use
of insurance benefits), or of continu-
ing to practice full time outside the in
system.
Patients will be free to choose their
general practitioners and to change
them if their first choice proves UNI
satisfactory. Doctors will be equally
free to accept or reject patients who
choose them. Free choice is explicit
ly guaranteed in the bill.
Isn't three billion dollars a year an
enormous amount of money to spend
onon medical care and hospitaIiza-
ton?
Absolutely not. Medical care ordin-
arily costs the people of this county |
in direct payments and through taxa
ton about four billion dollars a year |
Direct expenditures by the people |
amount to about three bill |
ions. About two-thirds of this sum
s now expended for the benefits which |
will be provided under the bill
Is it true that the Surgeon General
will assign all patients to all doctors?
Certainly not. Patients will have
rec choice of all general practitioners
within the system.
Will the disqualification provisions
n the bill destroy the voluntary hos
oital system?
No. This is nonsense. Nothing in
he bill provides for or would even
PERMIT any interference in the inter-
lal management of any hospitals
'rivate, public or sectarian.
Will the provisions for grants-in-aid
or medical education mean that medi-
al education will be Controlled" by
he Surgeon General and that he will
ictate which men and women may
ecome medical students?
OF course not. The provisions of
lection I'LL of the bill give the Sur
con General no such authority The I
urpose of this provision is to provide
eeded funds for the stimulation and |
Import of research and medical edu-
alton. Requests must, of course, be
pproyed by the Surgeon General af- &
er consultation with the advisory +,
ouncil, to make sure that public funds {
re wisely spent. S
Is it true that the enactment of the
i'll will plunge the physicians into
Official slavery? :
This statement has been made by |
pponents of the bill to confuse and ,
isturb physicians and others. There /
nothing political about the Social {
ecurity Board or about the office of /
lie Surgeon General of the Public /
Iealth Service.
Is it true that under the hospitaliza- S
on provisions of the bill, people will /
OF be able to choose their hospitals? 4
People do not usually have free t
loice of hospitals today. Ordinarily, In