Evening star., 1950-05-24
Hospital Chiefs,
.HSA toConfer
On NeedyFunds
Potent Restriction
Methods to Be
Discussed Tomorrow
By George Beveridqe


The touchy problem of how to
curtail the number of needy hos
pital patients who can get help
from limited Community Chest
funds will be tackled tomorrow by
the city's hospital leaders.
Meeting in closed session at 4
pm. will be administrators of
Washington's hospitals and Off
cials Of the Hospital Service
Agency, it was learned today. The
agency decides if patients are
eligible for Chest aid and pays
hospitals for treating them.
DR.. Thistle Mckee, HSA presi-
dent, said the agency will begin,
on June /, to approve for Chest
help only certain types Of patients,
in order to stay within Chest
funds earmarked for that month.
HSA virtually closed its doors
last Wednesday, after spending
all the funds allocated for May.
Time Limit Restriction.
Willard c. Smith, HSA chief,
said his group will have to in
sist" on imposing a definite time
limit on the number of days of
hospital care per patient for
which the Chest will pay, as one
of the restricting provisions. Hos
pital leaders are expected to OBJ
ject strenuously to this proposal.
"One objection" a hospital rep
resentative said, sis that hospitals
which specialize in care of long
term patients would be penalized,
while those who keep patients for
shorter periods would feel only
little effect"
Last fall, when the Chests hos
pitalization fund began to run low,
HSA reduced the rate of payment
to- hospitals in order to make the
money last all year.
At HSA'S annual meeting last
night, DR.. Henry c. Macatee said
medical needs cannot be tailored"
to the restricted plan to go into
effect next month.
Would Clarity Issue.
DR.. Macatee said he felt that
nothing would speak more elo-
quently to the public than if the
money ran out next fall, and no
more people could be hospitalized
at community expense" He said
his remarks were made "out of
my own feelings so the members
of this corporate body can make
Ia stir in the community"
However, Edward j. Keyes, exec
utive director of the Community
Chest Federation, told the group
that money raised in the Chest
drive must finance a balanced
program of health. welfare and
recreational services" in addition
to the disqualification program.
Mr.. Keyes said the hospital
problem is "a community dilem-
ma" and that the real respon-
sibility rests with the contributors
of this community"
II just cannot believe" he de-
clared, that there will be any
suffering by any patient. The
hospitals have said they will con-
tinue to accept emergency patients
at their own expense if funds run
out"
$4,000 for June.
Contending that the public ex-
poets the Chest to budget money
for each program, he said HSA
must not exceed monthly allot-
ments during the rest of the year.
The June allotment, Mr.. Smith
said, will be about $4,000, to
which HSA will add about $1,000.
The HSA share comes from money
recovered from patients able to
pay part of their expenses. The
June total is the same as that
which ran out last week for May.
DR.. Macatee also charged that
the Chest arbitrarily" estimated
that HSA would recover an excess
slVe amount of money from
patients. giving a false balance of
$4,000 to the hospital fund this
year.
The Chest last fall estimated
$225.000 as the recovery amount
while HSA officials contended they
could expect only $150,000. Thus
far this year, Mr.. Smith an
nounced. the figure is near the
$150,000 rate.
HSA Re-elects Board.
The HSA group reelected its
board OF trustees and Is members
OF the corporation. In addition
these IS new members were
elected:
Edmund d. Campbell, Randall
Hicks, Mrs. Albert Miller, Art
Phelan. Lawrence Proctor, DR..
Katherine Symmonds, Charles E
Smoot, Donald King b m,
Thomas Eagan, DR.. Alfred N.
Palmer, DR.. Nelson Podolnick, DR..
Joseph M. Kline and DR.. George
j. Hageage.