STATE HEALTH SCHEMES

Press, Volume LXXXIX, Issue 27225, 17 December 1953, Page 9

STATE HEALTH SCHEMES

Study By American Congressmen

MISSION ON BRIEF VISIT TO NEW ZEALAND

(New Zealand Press’ Association) *< a WELLINGTON, December 16. Ar H e H cans are today realising a responsibility for the medical care of the middle-income groups,” said Mr Charles A. Wolverton, Republican chairman of the inter-State and foreign committee of the United States House of Representatives, in an interview today at Wellington. Mr Wolverton is visiting New Zealand for two days to examine the social security scheme. Mr Wolverton said that the poor who , s^ * n the United States were cared for by a number of public and private institutions. The wealthy were well able to afford medical care and attention, but today’s costs meant that if a member of the middle-income group, .most of the population, fell ill the savings of a lifetime might be swallowed up in medical treatment and hospital expenses. In the United States there were the co-operatively managed Blue Shield and Blue Cross services, and employersponsored schemes such as the Kaiser system. A number of trade unions, too, had included “fringe benefits” covering sickness in their agreements with ■employers, but, there was no allembracing scheme.

“Mv committee, after hearing a lot of evidence on the subject, came to the conclusion that something should be done.’i he said. “In our country it is not easy to carry out anything of that sort. The American Medical Society is very much opposed to anything of the kind. Its argument is that a benefit scheme is socialised medicine, and that is a very strong argument for the average citizen. Tne medical profession built up a bogyman, so to speak, to scare people off it. However, there are others on. my committee who feel very much as I do, so we decided to make this investigation.” Britain’s Scheme In Britain, where the national health scheme had been in operation for four years, Mr Wolverton and two of his colleagues found that most of the objections had been met, and the scheme was working reasonably smoothly, in spite of the bitter opposition of the medical profession four years ago. The mission had also been surprised to learn that many of the smaller and less publicised countries had recognised the need for organised medical care for their people, and were doing their best to meet the need. When the members of the mission returned to the United States they would prepare a report, and then the Congressional committee would to work out a scheme to suit American conditions.

The two other Congressmen in the mission. Mr Richard W. Hoffman and Mr William L. Pringer, were obliged to cut the tour short in Japan, leaving Mr Wolverton to come to Australia and New Zealand. He is accompanied by Dr. Andrew Stevenson, the committee’s technical staff member, and the military escort officer, Colonel Orval N. Burroughs. The party will leave Auckland tomorrow for Honolulu.