NATIONAL HEALTH

Otago Daily Times, Issue 22479, 25 January 1935, Page 8

NATIONAL HEALTH

COMPULSORY INSURANCE SCHEME PROPOSALS FORMULATED (Pee United Peers Association) • WELLINGTON, January; 24. Proposals for a compulsory national health insurance scheme for New Zealand have been formulated by the executive of the Hospital Boards’ Association, with the co-operation of several member# of the New Zealand branch of the British Medical Association. These will be placed before a general conference of hospital boards and the. British Medical Association. Should the members of the two, organisations reach unanimity in agreeing upon a practical scheme no doubt representations will be made to the Government with, a view to, its adoption and the introduction of legislation. There is reason to,believe,.that official quarters are impressed with the advantages of a national health insurance. A summary of the proposals is as follows.- ;• ; > ’ ‘ _ . . , t 1. That a national health insurant* scheme is desirable. - > ■’■ . , 2. That such scuerae should be compulsory. I - 3. That it should apply to all in receipt of a salary and wages below the present income tax limits. 4. That it should apply to all persona in receipt of salaries or wages within the limit prescribed between the ages, of 16 to 65. . '.yv, 5. That it should provide a complete medical service and should include general practitioner service, hospital benefit, . consultant And specialist, .services, maternity benefit, dental benefit, home nursing and such other types of medical care as seem desirable. , , 6. That it should include the dependants of the insured. . 7. That the scheme should be a contributory one and that the contribution# should be at a rate regarded as suitable from an actuarial point of. view. ~ ■,.. > . 8. That the payment of a doctor should be at a flat rate so far as general practitioner service is concerned, and according to the work done-for specialist, and consultative services, i [,| - 0. That freedom of choice as between doctor and patient, which is such an important, part of the scheme in England, should be incorporated in any New Zealand scheme. 10. That the insurance scheme could be fitted into our existing machihery, and that in the Health Department and the hospital boards we have suitable agencies to represent central government and local insurance'committees. v .r ■ i ■ ; FREE HOSPITAL ‘TREATMENT INVESTIGATION OF SCHEME.."V (Special to Daily Times) ' ’ WELLINGTON,. January 24/ . 1 At the general conference of hospital boards at Palmerston’ North in 1929 Vths executive of the association was urged’’ to investigate the ' practicability fof ( a scheme for free hospital treatment of wage . earners and dependents, the cost’of it to be met by a compulsory, levy; .on wages payable through employers, direct to the hospital bpard of the district concerned. The "first inquiry undertaken was directed more particularly to the question, of' instituting .a voluntary -contributory scheme/or avhumber of, separate voluntary schemes,for hospital,benefit only./. This investigation convinced.-the .executive that yoluntary Bcheme r .df/ a number of such schemes could-’ not. have very general application in' New Zealand owing to its distribution of population. It was considered that voluntary .scheme# were more; or less in competition with and supernuposed/ on .the existing, hospital benefit schemes of .friendly .societies and medical associations, and would not he of great national benefit. The idea of a voluntary contributory scheme was therefore abandoned; and the executive decided tp give', attention to the question of a complusory scheme./ ; It also formed the opinion that, ,a. compulsory scheme should coyer not only the hospital expenses of the’ contributor# But all medical expenses. It was considered that the administrative machinery of a compulsory, contributory scheme in New Zealand would hardly be justified 1 if hospital benefit alone were to be pro-, vided., ’, ■ ■ /,•,,... ■ .;>/ ~ ' ■

The proposal for, a national health insurance scheme was: advanced a stage further when the executive met in conference with Several practitioners in -December, 1933. After a general discussion a committee consisting of three ; memibers of the British Medical Association—Dr T. Duncan Stout, Dr D, Macdonald Wilson and Dr G. Tfy. Y. Ansen—and three members of the executive of the Hospital Boards’, Association —Messrs W. Wallace, F. Castle and J. K. Hornblow—was appointed to draw up a report on the proposal. The report of this committee was fully considered at a meeting of the; executive of the Hospital Boards’ Association, with several members of the British Medical Association. • THe report was adopted without alteration, and it is to be placed before the next general conferences of e hospital boards and of the British Medi- ’ cal Association. The conferences of the first-named association take: place at Napier on March 5 and that of . the B.M.A. at the end of February.