Hospital Upkeep As National Cost

Manawatu Times, Volume 66, Issue 109, 9 May 1941, Page 8

Hospital Upkeep As National Cost

EATING IS INEQUITABLE Per Press Association. MASTERTON, May 8. “Tli® statement reported at New Plymouth by the Minister of Health, Mr Nordmeyer, that we should be able to evolve a more equitable system of rating, where the upkeep of hospitals would be a national and not a local cost will receive a warm welcome from all ratepayers in New Zealand,” said Mr T. Jordan, president of the Municipal Association, to-day. “The Municipal and Counties Associations have for some years been striving to evolve such a scheme.” Mr Jordan added, “and we are definitely convinced that the only equitable system of rating for hospital expenditure is by a levy on wages and salaries. This principle has been adopted in pari under the Social Security Act. Under that Act, hospital expenditure to the extent of 6/- per day per patient is raised by the tax on wages and salaries. “When the Bill was before the committee of the House over which Mr Nordmeyer presided, I stated, on behalf of our association, that we believed this was the only equitable method of raising the money, and the Minister of Finance readily agreed, but, to my question why it was net being completely carried out, he replied that it could not all be done at once. Addition to Social Security Tax. “Since then, a combined deputation from the two associations waited upon the then Minister of Health, Mr Fraser, and again stressed the present injustice and put forward the remedy now suggested. The official reply was that the Government was not prepared to give effect to it, but no reasons were given At that time, an additional charge of slightly more than Id in the £ in the social security levy would have taken the load off the ratepayers. “Mr Nordmeyer’s statement will encourage us to go on with our efforts. “It may be of interest to the public, to know that the Government subsidy to hospital boards is based on an extraordinarily complicated method of computation under which the amount pai to the boards varies from 14/- in the £ in some districts to 26/- in others. . This should be borne in mind when comparisons are being made between the financial position of boards in the various districts on the question of the national or local cost of hospitals. Treatment of Soldiers. “It will also be of interest to the public to knew that the Government War Expenses Fund has not yet undertaken total responsibility for sick and wounded soldiers in hospitals. We have urged the justice of this, but so far the Government is paying, in official language, ‘something further than 6/per day per patient” out of the Social Security Fund. “In my district, this ‘something* I 3 5/per day, where the secretary-manager of the Hospital Board states tliat the amount should be 14/- per day if the full cost were to be met. The remaining 9/- per day per soldier is at present a charge on the ratepayers. This is obviously unjust.”