Evening star., 1951-05-06
Three Hospitals
Criticize New
INDECENT Policy
Charge Institutions
Are Undermined as
Gollinger Benefits

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being undermined-to the bene-
fit of Gallinger Hospitality the
Districts present medical care
program for indigentS.
The charge was made as lay
and medical officials of Provi-
dence. Garfield and Episcopal
Hospitals called a special press
conference to protest the proposal
to stop District payment to their
three hospitals for treating in
digents.
They also:
l. Urged higher rates of pay
ment from the city-at least up
to the $12.50-a-day average pa
tient cost at Gallinger. Eight vol
untary hospitals now are paid at
the rate of SO day for treating
INDECENT bed patients and So for
clinic visits.
Policy Called Unrealistic.
2. Charged that District officials
already are cutting down the
number of patients for which VOL
untary hospitals can be paid, anS
called such policy "unrealisNc
and expensive"
If it continues. they declared,
non-government hospitals will
lose the number of non-paying
patients needed to attract interns
and resident physicians to take
training. This will cause a reduc-
ton in the quality of care for the
entire community. they said.
I'VE feel Gallinger, at the cost
of the voluntary hospitals and the
community, is attempting to build
an empire for ITSELF" declared
Walter N. Tobriner, president of
the Hospital Council of the Ma
tional Capital Area.
The basis of these arguments is
a long standing controversy over
how much of the city's indigent
program should be confined to
Gallinger and how much should
be farmed out to community
hospitals.
DOnOhue Will Report.
Commissioner F. Joseph Dono-
hue, meanwhile. said he will report
to the Board of Commissioners to-
morrow or Tuesday on whether the
three hospitals should be retained
in the INDECENT care program. He
refused to discuss his decision.
The three were eliminated from
the 1852 budget, for the year
starting in July, after the Com
missioners cut-from $685., 900 au-
thorized this year to $500, ,000-aI
request for money to pay the vol
untary hospitals. District contracts
authorize payment for treating
emergency" bed patients and
clinic patients who qualify for care
at District expense. The qualif1ca-
tions, the same as those for free
care at unsupported Gallinger,
are based on income and residence
in the District.
Seckinger Urges Retention.
Health Director Daniel L. Seek
niger has urged that the three
hospitals be retained. 1t is on his
recommendation that Mr.. Dono-
hue's report will be based.
What would elimination of the
three hospitals mean to them?
Deaconess Bechtol, Episcopal
administrator, said it would mean
having to find about $4,000 to
replace the money we would lose.
And that amount. she said, based
on the SO rate, is far below the
actual hospital cost.
During the last six months of
1850, Deaconess Bechtol said, the
District agreed to pay Episcopal
for 521 days of hospital care and
11,019 clinic visits.
Even if it should get no pay
ment next year, she said, the
hospital would be forced to con-
tinue to care for many such
patients. The reasons are that
some would be emergency cases
and some would have to be treated
as part of the hospital training
program for young doctors.
But because of the financial
strain, she said, the number would
be sure to drop.
920 Days For Providence.
Providence. during the same
Six-month period, got District ap-
proval for. 920 days of hospital
treatment and 6,128 clinic visits.
This was a sharp drop from 2,944
days of hospital care and 7,720
clinic visits approved during the
previous year.
Actually, the 920 days certified
was small part of the 1890
total days of care given by Provi-
dence. But the 6.128 comprised
more than two-thirds of the 9,100
clinic visit total.
Garfield. which was certified for
only $50 hospital days and 878.
clinic visits during the last half
of 1850, already has sharply cur
tailed participation in the in
digent program.
"The reason is that we were
unable to take such loss on pa
tients at the SO rate" said Leo
SCHNEIDER, administrator. But
we peed those we are treating
for the training program and, if
rates were brought more in line
with costs, we would like to take
more"
Stricter Standards Imposed.
In all three hospitals, decreases
this year in the number of in
digents certified for payment, re-
suited from Stricter standards
imposed by the District, officials
told The Star. The most impor-
tant of them, they said, denies
payment to clinic patients who
must be admitted for hospital
care. even though their cases
have been followed closely in
clinics.