The midland journal., 1945-10-05
zks~Aos,se
os4lIs
In WASHINGTON
BY WolteY Sheud
WNU corrsspendsns
Doctors Lobby Fights
Socialized Medicine
WNU Washington Bureau.
1915 Eye ST.. N. w.


II congress, If leaders in the fields
of economics, of agriculture, indus
try, labor, social relations, ETC.,
actually know what the people are
thinking, what the people Of the ma
tion want or need. It Is easy for
persons down here in the nations
capital where events happen so fast
and with such far-reaching effect, to
lose the common touch"
And the cause for most of the
blindness and the out-of-focus per-
spective is self-interest and the self
ish activities of various pressure
groups.
At the present time, there is a
tremendous lobby functioning
against the extension of the social
security act to include medical care
and hospital insurance and other
protective features for low income
groups. This lobby is spearheaded
by an organization known as the
National Physicians committee,
with headquarters in Chicago.
Every effort is being made by this
opposition to defeat the provisions
of the new social security amend
ments, all in the face of the wants,
needs and desires of those for whom
the benefits are intended. Labor is
solidly behind the new social securi-
ty proposals and survey just COM
pleted by the department of agricul-
ture indicates that this same con-
cern is voiced by farmers the coun-
try over.
Hospital Insurance
The survey shows that more
than f0ur-fifths of the nations
farmers favor more public med
ical clinics in rural areas, and
more than three-f0urths want to
subscribe to some fat-rate pre-
payment plan to cover possible
hospital bills and the cost of
doctors and nurses for them
selves and their families. This
Is the disqualification insurance
feature Of the new proposals.
The answers to the department
survey indicate that farmers gen.
orally are conscious and concerned
about the need for better rural med
ical and health facilities. They are
aware that farm youth, 18 and 10
years old, showed the highest re-
lection rate in the selective service
for physical, mental and education
al defects of any occupational group
-. Al per cent, compared with an
average Of rs per cent for other
groups.
Many factors, the survey shows,
contribute to bad rural health :.
the shortage of medical and santa
tion facilities and the lack of physi-
clans, dentists and hospital serv-
ices. Many Of these rural folks
are in the low income groups which
would be reached by the new
amendments, since in 1899, approx-
mately 100000 out of the 5000, 900
farms in the country produced less
than $500 worth of farm products.
The records show that out Of the
3,070 counties in the country, in 1910
there were 1900 counties contain.
ing a total of more than $1,000, 900
people, which had no hospitals at
all. And there were only about /, 300
counties with any organized pub
lie health service, and most of
these inadequate. According to the
estimates of the surgeon general of
the United States, there is need
now for some $4,000, 900 in hospital
construction which would provide
for 100000 jobs including doctors,
nurses, technicians and assistants to
keep them going.
Medical Care Wanted
Animal husbandry, consolidated
schools, roads and bridges, soil
conservation and crop insurance,
agricultural experiment stations,
vast agricultural laboratories and
many other material detectives
are fostered through governmental
help for the benefit of the rural
areas. Many, many farmers, how
ever, believe that assurance Of
medical and hospital care for them
selves and their families are more
important than building roads, con.
structing dams or saving soil, and
that no price is too high for a
healthy, vigorous and productive
people.
The statistics show that although
the death rate from all causes for
the last several decades has been
lower among rural people than ur-
ban folks, deaths from some pre-
ventable diseases such as typhoid,
diphtheria, malaria and pellagra
tend to be more numerous among
rural people.
Moreover, the death rate has been
going down rapidly in the cities, but
relatively slowly in the rural areas.
The records show that folks in the
rural areas are Ill oftener and for
longer periods than city people.
Under the social security law
there are now 36,000,000 insured
workers against unemployment.
l. g.