The guardian. [volume] (Boston, Mass.) 1901-1960, 1946-04-27
Rev. AIphOnse N. SchWitaIIa, S. J.,
Opposes Government Medicine

over federal, in assisting the
individual.
"Thus far there is no evil
dence that local responsibility
and the state are incapable of
coping with the problem of
personal health. The wide va
riety of plans by which the in
dividual may carry his respons-
Utility for health care makes
unnecessary any federal mo-
nopoly of the aids by which the
individual is assisted in living
up to his responsibility"
DR.. Cary, who testified before
the Senate committee last
week, observed that an effort
had been made to classify wit
nesses as radicals or reaction
aries, liberals or conservatives,
on the basis of their approval
of or opposition to the Wagner
Murray Dingell bill.
For more than 40 years I
have been practising medi-
cine" he said. II can claim
some knowledge of the scien-
tifi@ advancement in medicine
during that period. I have tried
with some degree of success to
keep abreast of these unpar-
allied devopments.
II should like to stress a fact
that is generally unrecognized,
The n,,st radical and most
ruthlessly revolutionary forces
in the world are the cold, I'M
biased findings of science I'M
aginingS, theories, speculations
and vain desires inevitably
must give way before establish
ed truth. I am a scientist. I
accept the dicta of science.
Hence I must be voted a radi-
cal and in a sense, even a rev.
dictionary"
Il am not afraid of revolu-
tionary change if it means
progress"
Thus, Dr.. Cary said, every
physician favors more and bet
ter medicical care for every
person and fights continually
for that achievement.
THAT is one of the reasons"
he continued, why our system
of medical care distribution
has provided more effective
medical care for more people
relatively than has ever been
provided anywhere by any
method. 1 stand four-square
on the issue of further utiliza-
ton of our method and tech
niques to provide more and
more people with better service.
The proposed law would over
throw this proved system for
a strictly collectivistic one
which might work in a Fascist
or Communist state, but never
in this nation while we retain
even the pretense of democra-
cy."
The choice before the Amer
lean people, DR.. Fishbein said,
is whether medicine in the
United States is to continue its
unmatched progress or to sink,
through government regimen
tation, into a routinized, clock
watching bureaucracy with
full-time employed civil serv-
ants"
In Great Britain" he said,
the issue has been clearly de-
fined and the secretary of the
British Medical Association has
said that the proposals before
Parliament must leadineyitably
and soon to complete state
medicine"
The American people is thor
oughly conditioned to insur-
ance, DR.. Fishbein pointed out,
which should assume the sue
cess of ovluntary medical care
insurance plans. He observed
that more than 100000 now
carry some form of life insur-
ance on voluntary basis and
that, as medical service plans
are perfected, millions will be
added to the 100000 now
carrying hospital care insm-
ance and the millions enrolled
in commercial industrial or
non-profit prepayment plans
sponsored by organized medi-