Evening star., 1951-10-17
D. Cost Raised
AS Senate! Votes
Aid 10 Hospitals
Bill Sent Back to
House for Action on
Repayment Change
By Don S. Warren


By Don S. Warren
The Mccormack bill authorizing
$13 million for reconstruction Of
non profit Washington hospitals
today seemed headed for final &C
tion, If it can surmount one more
hurdle.
This would be House approval
of Senate amendment raising
the amount of loans the District
government would be required to
repay. An alternative would be
to send the amended bill to a
House-Senate conference to settle
the differences.
Already passed by the House.
the measure was subjected to
nearly five hours of Senate de-
bate yesterday, during which
short-lived filibuster was staged
by Senator Johnston, Democrat,
Iof South Carolina. Much of this
was directed to questions of
church and State.
Party Lines Split.
Senate passage came on a roll
call vote of 81 to 25, in which
party lines were split, along with
North South and East West
groups. Earlier, after some hot
spells of debate, the Senate voted
down, "a to 20. move by Senator
Johnston to send the bill back to
the District Committee for further
study.
This would have killed the bill,
at least for this session.
House sponsors of the bill are
expected to move promptly to get
Ia final agreement, though precise
plans were not formulated last
night.
Representative Abernathy, DEM
Iocrat. of Mississippi whose Dis
trict subcommittee handled the
bill on the House side, said he still
was opposed to the principle of
the bill but preferred the Senate
version to the one passed by the
Houses He said he was prepared
to accept the Senate bill, if Con-
Igress wanted to enact the measure.
500 Loan Repayment.
The only difference is an
amendment sponsored by Senator
Case, Republican, of South Da-
fkota to require the District Gov
ernment to repay so per cent,
instead of 80 per cent, of the
loans made under the bill. The
District share would be repaid,
over a 33-year period without
interest.
The measure would make avail
able Government advance of up
Ito $13.3 million to non-profit pri-,
'vate hospitals not participating in
the Washington Hospital Center;
project. a $35 million program
authorized by an act of 1916.
Under the pending bill, the hos
|pitals-Providence, Sibley, Casu-
atty and Homeopathic-would be
required to put UP matching
money. or so per cent of. the cost
of any of their individual i'm,
Iprovement projects. The over
all. net Federal share. therefore.
would be Is per cent of each
approved project for which Con-
|gressional appropriations were
made.
There was some doubt last night
as to whether the Case amend
ment might apply to the three,
other non-prof1t hospitals enter-
ing into the Hospital Center to be
built on the grounds of the Sol
Idiers' Home. Senator Case said
he did not so intend but that he
would make inquiries.
Pastore Pilots Bill.
The bill was piloted through
the Senate yesterday by Senator
Pastore, Democrat, of Rhode Is
land. who declared Metropolitan
Washington is in urgent need of
additional hospital facilities and
that these could not be provided
by private means.
He was supported by Demo-
cratic Senators Hunt of wy.
oming. O'Conor of. Maryland, Nc
Mahon Of Connecticut and Leh-
man Of New York and by Senator
Case.
In a bitter attack, Senator
Johnston said the bill would be
a direct violation of the Constitu-
tion separation of church and
State. This was in reference to
Providence, "a Catholic institution,
and to Sibley, a Methodist hos
reifo1