LATEST AMENDMENTS

New Zealand Herald, Volume 78, Issue 24104, 24 October 1941, Page 8

LATEST AMENDMENTS

DOCTOR AND PATIENT That the council of the New Zealand branch of the British Medical Association had generally agreed that, by its latest amendments to the Social Security .Bill, the Government has restored the old relationship between patient and doctor, was stated yesterday by Dr. L. G. Drury, president of the Auckland division of the association, in reporting on a meeting at Wellington the previous day. The council also felt, he said, that with one exception the Government had returned to the doctor his inherent rights as an individual in a democratic State. The one right still denied the profession was that- of access to the Courts, Dr. Drury added. The council had unanimously decided that until this was restored doctors could not agree to help in the full and efficient administration of the general practitioners' section of the Social Security Act. Neither could the council agree to the appointment of any members of the profession to various medical boards which were to be set up to administer the Act. "Nevertheless," said Dr. Drury, "the profession is prepared to do all that can be reasonably expected of it to help patients to reclaim from the Government the 7s 6d or 12s 6d mentioned in the Act, and* regulations, as the amounts recoverable from the Social Security Fund for day and night attention. "This means that, apart from the right of the patient to recover such prescribed sums from the Government, medical practice will continue as previously, and the old-time relationship between the patient and doctor will in no way be disturbed." Dr. ' Drury, Mr. A. Eisdell Moore and Dr. G." J. S. Fisher were Auckland representatives at tho meeting ol the council.