Evening star., 1946-04-29
By Seliq Greenberq

By SeIie Greenbere
Pooling of the present separate
and competitive Embarrassing drives
of the various voluntary health
agencies into single, unified, Ma
tion-Wide health fund campaign as
"a more effective and economical
method of enlisting the support of
the American people in the fight
against disease and of distributing
that support according to need Is
favored by number of nationally
known authorities.
In urging replacement of the pres
ent confusing multiplicity of appeals
by federated campaign, these men
stressed the need for an integrated
and well-balanced voluntary health
program which would be concerned
with the total health of the COM
munity rather than any specialized
disease and assure the contributor
that his dollar would be used where
it could do most good.
War Fund in GuidepOst.
An important guidepost on the
road toward such a program, sew
eral of those interviewed empha-
sized. was provided by the achieve
ments of the National War Fund
and the Community Chest which in
joint drives during the war years
raised a total of s75O,0OO 900 for
home front and war front needs.
Among those who indorsed the
idea of federated set-up in the
voluntary health field, by gradual
steps if necessary, and with pos
Sible extension later to include ma
tional public welfare agencies were:
Winthrop w. Aldrich, chairman of
the board of the Chase National
Bank of New York and president of
the National War Fund.
Gerard Swope, former president
of the General Electric Co. honorary
president Of Community Chests and
Councils, and chairman of the
DtabSO vi IllC :" al uIlu.
DR.. Philip S. Platt, executive di-
rector of the New York Association
for the Blind and co-author of the
recently published three-year study
of voluntary Health Agencies"
financed by the Rockefeller Founda-
ton
Washington Men Back Plan.
DR.. r. R. Spencer, director of the
National Cancer Institute of the
United States Public Health Service.
DR.. Abram Daley chief of the
Division of Health Services of the
United States Children's Bureau.
George st. J. Perrott chief of the
! Division of Public Health Methods
of the United States Public Health
Service
The logic of the idea Of federation
is indeed irrefutable.
An appeal to emotion is a poor
guide to giving and an even poorer
criterion of worth.
AS DR.. Platt puts it: Getting
money is in itself no proof of any
thing except that TIA puhlic has
tbesmepeTr4ried to,siYes'it-H it has
been persuaded to spend millions
OF dollars on patent medicines and
gimcracks."
:" s4ahple of Biz Disparity.
The extreme disparity between the
phenomenal Embarrassing success of
the infantile paralysis foundation
more than sl6,000000 in its 1914 -5
fiscal year-and the income of the
American Heart Association, which
IN 1914 was able to collect only
$28.776, is regarded by DR.. Platt las
startling as it is significant"
Mr.. Aldrich, Mr.. Swope and Mr.
Seymour fall back on the lessons
learned through the war fund in
their advocacy of federation in the
voluntary health field. The war
fund-the first federated philan-
thropic effort on a national scale
ran its final campaign last fall and
is liquldating its activities this year.
But they feel that its spirit and
! procedures should be retained and
further developed in peacetime.
One OF the greatest achievements
! OF the National War Fund" Mr..
Aldrich declared, was the manner
in which 1t brought about unity
between the various religious. racial
and economic groups and between
the various sections of the country.
l think that if this kind of unity
can be continued in the postwar
period it would be very advan-
tageous thing"
Wants Set-Up Left.
The War Fund included many
agencies devoted to the war effort
and to foreign relief work, the latter
of which had to be approved by the
Presidents War Relief Control
Board. Now that both this board
and the War Fund are going out OF
existence. Mr. Aldrich feels that "a
national effort Of similar character
should now be concentrated in the
domestic field"
Mr.. Swope said he was unquali-
f1edly in favor of a health agency
federation along the pattern estab-
NY tllC
and the War Fund.
Pointing out that an agency's
Embarrassing success now depended
to a large extent on its ability to
dramatic its appeal rather than
the relative Importance of its work
he said there was an urgent need
for budgetary setup under which
'appraisement of each appeal could
be made from the standpoint of the
whole health problem and appor-
tionment of funds could be guided
accordingly on the basis OF need"
The vital need for better CO.
ordination of private and govern
mental health activities was stressed
in particular by DR.. Spencer. DR.
Daley and Mr.. Perrott, all of whom
came in frequent contact with vol
untary agencies in their capacity
as Government officials. All three
said they were in favor of RATIONALE