Evening star., 1945-05-24
Hospital Bed
Shortage Here
Put at 1,648
Rutland and Droyton
Testify at Hearing
On Medical Center
BY DON S. WARREN.

Dy DoIN .. w VAhnEN.
Health Officer George c. Rutland
today told a House subcommittee
considering plans for a new hospital
center here there still is a shortage
Of 1,648 general" hospital beds in
the Metropolitan Area despite recent
and projected expansion of facilities.
The tremendous wartime rise in
the population of the District and it's
environS was given by DR.. Ruhland
as one reason for the shortage, in
testimony before the Fiscal Affairs
Subcommittee of the House District
Committee.
This group, headed by Representa-
tive Murphy, Democrat, of Pennsyl-
vania, has before it the Senate-ap-
proved bill sponsored by Senators
Tydings, Democrat, of Maryland and
Bilbo, Democrat. of Mississippi to
authorize Federal aid in the postwar
construction here of 1,50O-bed hos
pital center, in which several non
profit Washington hospitals would
participate.
Old Structures Criticized.
Other reasons for Federal aid were
advanced by Charles D. Drayton,
president of Children's Hospital and
chairman of the Hospital Presidents
Association.
Among these was the "deplorable"
physical condition of many of the
poorly planned and dilapidated old
private hospital structures, which,
he said, in some cases were rat
ridden and vermin- infested"
Another was that these nonprofit
hospitals no longer are able to
obtain large endowments necessary
for replacements and he also brought
out that the United States has an
obligation because the ban on de-
velopment of great private industries
here leaves the District in a special
situation not to be found in other
metropolitan areas.
Bill Authorizes U. S. Funds.
The bill authorizes the advance Of
necessary Federal funds for the
acquisition of a site and construc-
ton and equipment of the hospital
center, with one-third of this total
cost to be repaid by participating
nonproflt private hospitals. This
loan would be amortized over a pc
riod of so years with interest at 2
per cent on unpaid balances.
Thereafter, the center would be
operated on self-sustaining basis
by board including representatives
|. OF the Federal and District govern
ments and the participating hospi-
tails and the Community Chest.
Members of the subcommittee in
Guiding Chairman Murphy and Rep
resentatives Bates, Republican, of
Massachusetts, and O'Hara, Repub-
lican, of Minnesota, examined many
details of the proposals and the
needs.
Rutland Supports Drayton.
Called on for testimony regarding
the need, DR.. Rutland supported a
statement by Mr.. Drayton that
medical authorities generally agree
that the standard for the number
OF general hospital beds should be
5 per 1000 population.
He submitted a report to show
that, including a net increase Of
470 beds to result from the con-
struction of new hospitals for
Georgetown and George Washing
ton Universities, the Metropolitan
Area will have 4,70l beds-not
counting specialized facilities for
communicable diseases, tuberculous
patients and mental cases.
With the present population OF
this area estimated at 1,268,00O, he
said, this would show Greater WASH
ington with but 81 general beds per
l 600 population or a shortage Of
! l ,648 beds.
Bates Outlines Attitude.
! Mr.. Bates said he was not an
| tagonistic to the expansion of hos
pital facilities, and stressed that he
and other District committeeman
were familiar with the Federal
District fiscal relations problem, but
he asserted several times that pas
sage of the bill would establish a
new precedent. He said this would
be a Federal appropriation for a
project which would be then turned
over to private interests-albeit
nonprotit hospitals.
Mr.. Drayton insisted that aside
from the need there were precedents,
in that the Federal Works Admins
tration last year made consider
able" contributions towards the
construction of the new 400-bed hos
pitfalls for Georgetown and George
Washington Hospitals.
Maj. Gen. Philip B. Fleming, head
of the FWA, told the committee
there were several" cases in which
public works funds had been grant,
ed for private organizations, but Mr..
Bates contended that those involved
wartime funds for war emergency
cases.
The hearings were to be contir-
ued this afternoon and Chairman
Murphy said the record would be
held open for possible additional
sessions if other witnesses asked to
be heard.
Attending the session were many
District and medical interests, in
cluding Mrs. Millard Tydings and
Mrs. Warran Barbour, whose reports
on conditions in various private
hospitals here inspired legislative
action in the Senate.
New Abattoir Output Held
n -