PANEL DOCTORS

Otago Daily Times, Issue 24776, 28 November 1941, Page 4

PANEL DOCTORS

PATIENTS' RIGHT OF TRANSFER RULING SOUGHT IN SERVICE APPEAL (PA.) INVERCARGILL, Nov. 27. , A ouestion whether patients have legal rights of transfer from the lists of any of the doctors who operated the original social security medical benefits' scheme was raised at a sitting of the Armed Forces Appeal Board to-day during the hearing of an appeal for exemption irom service on behalf of Dr Athol Ewan, McMillan, of Invercargill. The appeal, which was adjourned from a previous sitting of the board, was adjourned until tomorrow morning pending a ruling from the Minister of Health, Mr A. H. Nordmeyer. The appeal was made by the Hotel Workers' Union, the Invercargill branch of the Amalgamated Society of Railway Servants of New Zealand, the Associated Society of Railway Servants, David Harris, union secretary, the Central Branch of the New Zealand Labour Party, and Peter Hennessey. The chairman (Mr J. R. Bartholomew, S.M.) quoted a newspaper report of a statement by the department, and said that apparently those patients under the original capitation scheme of 15s a year for each patient were not eligible for the new scheme. The original scheme seemed to be the limit of their rights, which meant that those patients could have recourse only to one doctor, except. in an emergency. Mr A. N. Haggitt (for the Crown): They can resign. " We should have something authoritative before us," said Mr Bartholomew. Counsel for the appellants, Mr Gordon J. Reed, said he would send a telegram to the Minister.