Evening star., 1953-11-24
Plans 10 Treat
Addicts Gain
On TwoFronts

Hendrickson Group
Interested; Hospital
Makes Space for 16
The Districts program fol-
compulsory disqualification of its
dope addicts got two boosts to-
day.
First. Chairman Hendrickson
OF the Senate Juvenile Delin-
quency subcommittee, after talk.
ing with his colleagues, said the
subcommittee definitely will rec
ommend Senate action in Janu-
ary to allow the District to send
its addicts to the Federal mar
coticS hospitals.
Second, Commissioner Samuel
Spencer said the, District will be
ready to receive the first 16 COM
mitted addicts in newly pre-
pared quarters at the District
General Hospital as soon as the
commitment law goes into effect
December "a.
The compulsory hospitaliza-
ton law, sponsored by The Star
and widely indorsed by both To-
cal and Federal officials, was
signed last June to take effect in
six months.
Early SetbackS.
But the District had no place
to treat them, and was advised
1t would take an enabling act to
allow the Public Health Service
hospitals to receive them. The
enabling bill, as first drawn
would have applied to all the
States and President Eisenhower
opposed it.
A compromise measure was
worked out at conferences of the
Budget Bureau, the Health, Edu-
cation and Welfare Department
and Commissioner Spencer. Rep
resentative Miller, Republican, of
Nebraska, sponsor of the original
measure, rushed the revised
measure through the House.
The compromise provided that
SO addicts committed under the
new law could be hospitalized al
any one time in the Federal hos
pitalS and the District would pay
the costs. The measure put a
June, 1856, deadline on these
edmiSSions-time for compulsory
disqualification to face court tests
and for the District to provide
its own facilities.
A combination of printing err
rorS and the inSistence of SEN
ator Gore, Democrat, of Tennes-
see':that hearings be held ON the
bill blocked Senate action on the
last day of the session.
Support From Anslinger.
The enabling bill came to the
attention of the Senate Juvenile
Delinquency subcommittee yes
terday when Federal Narcotics
Commissioner Harry j. Anslingel
testified that the Districts COM
pulsory disqualification bill was
lone of the most forward look
ing things in the whole picture
and the enabling act was neces-
sary to make it work.
Senator Kefauver, Democrat,
of Tennessee, a subcommittee
member, said he was sure Sen
ator Gore did not oppose it and
he himself would get behind it.
Senator Hennings, Democrat, of
Missouri, another subcommittee
member. said he hoped the sub
committee would support it and
in any case he would personally
Then Senator Hendrickson said
the measure certainly had the
subcommittee's support.
Commissioner Spencer ex-
pressed his appreciation of this
support. He said he felt the
District was doing it's part by
having facilities made ready to
receive the first addicts COM
mitted under the'new law.
Preparation Treatment.
The 16-bed setup at District
General. he explained, is to be
used as a temporary stop-over
where addicts can get through
their withdrawal Symtoms-the
after effects of drugs-and be
made ready for transfer to the
Federal narcotics hospitals at
Lexington, KY, or Fort Worth
Tex.
District General Hospital Supt
Philip A. E. Stebbing said the
new unit will be on the second
hoor of the pSychiatric divisions
administration building. DR.
Edward L. Rea, who completed
his residence work in medicine
last year, has just spent a month
at Lexington to prepare him to
supervise these patients, DR.
Stebbing said.
The nursing staff will come
out of the increase granted in
the hospitals current appropria-
ton. DR.. Stebbing emphasized
that the only treatment here will
be to get the addicts through
their withdrawal symptoms.
Commissioner Spencer said hs
hopes Congress will act early ir
January to prevent a jam-up ir
the 16-bed unit. He recalled
that Chairman Case of the Sen.
ate District Committee had said
after the bill was blocked, thai
the Commissioners should assume
that Legislation will be WORKED
out to make the Compulsory
disqualification Act effective"
r.: