The potters herald. [volume] (East Liverpool, Ohio) 1899-1982, 1950-11-16
Voluntary Way A Failure.
AMA's Own Journdl Shows

Chicago (LPA)-Oops, the doc
tors have slipped. An article in
their own publication, the Journal
of the American Medical Associa-
tion, documents the failure of vol
untary insurance plans.
The ANA, in its indecent attack
on health insurance as "socialized
medicine, has spent more than ST.
100000 in advertising that "The
Voluntary Way is the American
Way" 1t has allied itself with
anti-labor lobbies, with the land
lords lobbies, and with other
groups, and has adopted the re-
dictionaries line against social well
fare measures, including housing,
and aid to education. This has been
in exchange for the lobbies' support
against health insurance. The ANA
has entered the political arena and
has boasted of it's share in defeat
ing Senator Pepper in Florida and
Senator Graham in North Carolina.
Yet their own Journal, in it's
issue Of Nov. pages 1876 to 839,
discloses that the voluntary line
the ANA peddles is failure.
The article is entitled costs of
Hospitalized Acute Illness, and is
the report of a study made in
Washington, d. c., by Theodore
Wiprud, executive director and Sec
retary of the Medical Society of
the District of Columbia, and Isl
dore Altman, a biostatistician of
the US Public Health Service.
Their report is based on a study
of 1876 private patients for a two
week stay in the hospital. And their
overall conclusion, on the evidence
is:
"The cost of single illness is
often beyond the capacity of the
family to meet"
Which is what the proponents of
health insurance have been saying
all along, and what the ANA has
been getting purple in the face
denying.
For example, of .416 patients
whose income was under $4,000 a
year, 28.1 percent had to pay be-
tween 500 and $199 of their hos
pital and medical bill, despite the
protection" offered by voluntary
disqualification and medical insur
ance. Almost 20 percent had to pay
between 5000 and $299 additional; !;
13 percent had to pay between $500
and $499 additional; Al percent
had to pay $500 to 5000 additional;
1.2 percent had to pay $1,000 or
over additional.
This was for one illness in the
hospital, with an average stay of
two weeks. Now, the cost of hos
pitalization is only 40 percent of
the average family medical bill for
a year. Neither Blue Cross (hospi-
talization) nor Blue Shield doctor
bills) covers home visits by the
doctor. Nor does Blue Shield cover
just visit to the hospital for a
checkup.
Of the TIL patients in the $4,000
$4,000 income group, 1876 percent
had to pay, out of their own poe
kets, bills of 5000 to $299; 13 per-
cent, $500 to $499, and 2.6 percent,
bills of $500 to $999. This was in
addition to whatever coverage they
had and was the cost, to them, of
one illness.
Now, as to Blue Cross and Blue
Shield coverage. The study showed
that of the 416 patients in the
under $4,000 a year income, 43.7I
percent or 1876 patients, had no
coverage of any kind. Evidently |
they couldn't afford even the limit
ed coverage of Blue Cross and. Blue
Shield. In the $4,000 to $4999 group,
(771 patients) "a percent or 1876
patients had no coverage of any
Kind.
In other words, 1876 patients in
,he under $4,000 group had to payl
n full their hospital and their doc
or bills; in the $4,000 to $4999
group 1876 patients had to pay full
,osts.
Now, how much of the total
bill did the patients have
o pay? The study shows the fol-
owing:
Those eligible subscribers to
Group disqualification only (The
version of Blue Cross),
lad to pay, out of their own poe
tets, ID percent of the hospital bill,
md the whole medical bill; those
Who belonged to both the Blue
cross and the Medical Service Plan
Washington version of B Blue|
,hield) still had to pay out of their
,wn pockets, Ia percent of their
hospital bill and 81 percent Of thel
loctor bill.
But the Medical Service Plan