Evening star., 1944-12-10
Forecast
For Nationwide
Health Program
Medical Conference
Hears Appeals for
Action by Congress
BY HAROLD B. ROGERS.

By HAROLD B. ROGERS.
A new national organization of
doctors, labor leaders, social workers
and other medical care consumers"
Is to be established soon to rally
public support for compulsory ma
tional health insurance legislation
in the new Congress, 1t was pre-
dicted last night.
The forecast was made by DR..
Ernst P. Boas of the College of Ply
sicians and Surgeons Of Columbia
University, who heads the five-year-
old Physicians Forum, Inc, liberal
wing of the American Medical As
sociation. The ANA opposes COM
pulsory health insurance
DR.. Boas made his prediction at
the close of a national conference
on problems of medical care, at the
Willard Hotel, where for two days
widely differing points of view on
controversial medical issues were
aired. There was no difference on
the declared need for better distri-
button of medical care.
Effect on Doctors Debated.
While some spokesman opposing
compulsory health insurance warned
the conference that 80 per cent COW
erage of the American people by
such insurance would destroy the
private practice of medicine, spokes-
men for the Physicians Forum
countered with the argument that
on the contrary, experience abroad
by 80 nations with some form Of
health insurance showed it not only
protected private practice, but
helped to strengthen it.
DR.. Boas said the ANA had
strongly opposed the Wagner
Murray-Dingell bill provisions for
national health insurance in Con-
gressional hearings, but the Physi-
clans Forum, whose members are
in the ANA, favored such insurance.
The forum, he said, after pro-
longed study, has reached the con-
clusion that satisfactory distribu-
ton of medical care to all can be
achieved only through the technique
of national prepaid health insur-
ance."
He praised the high quality Of
medical care in the United States,
but said its distribution was bad.
adding that medicine is not living
up to its potentialities."
Hope for New Wagner Bill.
The Wagner bill is dead for all
practical purposes in this Congress,
DR.. Boas explained afterwards in
an interview, but I'VE expect it will
be introduced in revised form in the
new Congress"
During congressional hearings on
the bill, he told the conference,
"only the opposition was vociferous.
Advocates of the bill did not make
themselves felt. You of the rank
and file," he declared, addressing
the group of labor leaders, social
workers and consumers representa-
tives," certainly need mobilization
| for action. No action can be taken
until the larger consumer groups
express themselves. One reason we
called this meeting was to stress
the need for action on their part.
Some type of national organization
to continue action is necessary.
Today is not the time-maybe to-
morrow"
Asked later what he meant by
tomorrow, he said he intended to
lead the movement to set up the
new group for action" in the near
future. He called on the delegates
TO go back to their constituencies,
estimated in millions, to develop
strong public opinion
Call for Action Sounded.
A call for action was made to the
conference by several speakers. DR..
Michael Davis, chairman of the
Committee on Research in Medical
Economics, who reported to the
conference on results of a panel
discussion on veterans needs,
praised the Physicians Forum, of
which he "a doctor of philosophy
is not member. He said the pub
lie was amazed" at members of
the forum who, as doctors, stood
up to be counted" for national
health insurance.
Declaring that the public now is
receptive to new things" and the
legislative situation was fluid" on
medical care, Albert Deutsch, SCI
ence writer for the newspaper PM,
called for organized national sup
port now. He said that powerful
influences were at work against ma
tional health insurance, including
the National Physicians Commit
tee, the private insurance COM
panies and the top people in or
ganlzed medicine" who were strur-
Cling to preserve the medical status
quo"
Miss Audley Moore colored. rep
resenting the International Work
ers' Order, said her little people"
would benefit greatly from more
adequate medical care"
The tendency for health insurance
IN 80 countries to strengthen pri-
vate practice of medicine was re-
ported by DR.. Franz Goldmann,
clinical professor of health at Yale.
He took sharp issue with an earlier
statement to the same panel by DR..
Marie Shearon of the Public Health
Service, who had charged that
health insurance covering 90 per
cent OF the American people would
destroy private practice. DR.. Shear
on urged wider health services"
for the people.
Group Practice Urged.
DR.. Goldman favored group prac-
tice by several specialists working
together as providing better medi-
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