The potters herald. [volume] (East Liverpool, Ohio) 1899-1982, 1949-11-10
Humphrey Denies
He Backed Out On
Health Insurance

Hubert Humphrey wants it under
stood that he is for national healtl
insurance and has not backed down
because of the powerful ANA
lobby.
Humphrey, in a statement issuet
here over the week end to clarif!
his attitude, made it clear that h
still supports the principle Of ma
tional health insurance, but feel
that certain administrative prob
lens need to be worked out before
such a program is finally enacted
He feels, therefore, that enact
ment Of the Legislation should avail
further hearings, and further ex
perience with voluntary and indus
trial insurance plans.
The statement was issued by the
liberal Minnesota senator tC
straighten out his position-whicf
was distorted, he felt, by press re
ports on an interview he gave while
in Minnesota a few days ago. Al
that time the Senator had been re-
ported as saying he would vote
against health insurance if it come
to vote today-convinced by hear
ings that the legislation was not
yet ready for enactment.
This statement threw supporters
of health insurance into a dither,
as Senator Humphrey had been one
of the sponsors of the Legislation
and one of its strongest supporters.
They felt if he had given up the
fight-the fight was lost. Friends
tried to point out at the time that
Senators, like other politicians,
have to keep in step with the peo-
ple-and perhaps it had begun to
look to even the most liberal Sena-
tors as though the ANA lobby was
too powerful to buck until the peo-
pie were better educated on the
issue.
Humphrey, h viewer, resented
this implication of what he was
doing. He made it clear in his
formal statement this week end
that he still supported the principle
of compulsory health insurance, as
provided in President Truman's
health program.
He said that while in his state
ment last week to Victor Cohn,
of the Minneapolis Tribune, he
had been fairly reported, he had
not spelled out in sufficient detail
how he felt. Here is part of his
formal statement dealing with ma
tional health insurance.
"I consider it to be essential to
the welfare of the overwhelming
number of American men and
women. The principle of social sec
urity insurance is a protection
against the hazards over which
most of us have no control. | con-
slider the national health insurance
proposal to be an extension of this
proven and constructive vehicle for
social progress.
"Those of us who favor the prin-
ciple of social security insurance
recognize the practical difficulties
of administration of a nationwide
program of health insurance that
would directly affect the lives of
every citizen in this nation. We un-
derstand that until those practical
difficulties are met, legislative ac-
tion might we'll be a disservice to
the principle in which we believe.
1t is for that reason that our Sen
ate labor and Public Welfare Com
mittee has held and will continue
to hold hearings on the legislation.
"Since the problems of admins
tration are often formidable bar
riers to effectively carry out valid
| believe it is vital that
those of us who recognize the
need of comprehensive health in
coverage prepare ourselves
to solve the administrative pro-
blems of any such legislation. 1t is
my considered judgment, therefore,
that legislation for health insur-
ance is not yet in the Legislative
action stage and will not be in that
stage, regardless of its merits, un-
til there have been further hear
ings, further research, and until
a primary basic administrative for
mula has been developed.
"Present voluntary insurance
plans are not adequate and do not |
meet the needs of the people. 1t is
because of the limitations of these |
plans and the need of the people \
sor better medical care at a cost Il
IL. II