Ten-Year Prescription

Federal Security Administrator Oscar Ross Ewing, lawyer and formerly assistant chairman of the Democratic National Committee, had been asked by President Truman to prescribe a ten-year health plan for the nation. Last May Ewing, whose job includes supervision of the U.S. Public Health Service, called a National Health Assembly to get some advice from doctors and other experts (TIME, May 17). The assembly agreed that the U.S. needs some kind of medical insurance, but could not decide what kind. Mr. Ewing could.

Last week, after seven months of study, he presented the President with a 186-page report. To nobody's surprise, he recommended compulsory Government health insurance.

The nation's health, Ewing began by saying, is not what it should be (neither doctors nor Republicans were likely to argue that point). Every year, he estimated, 325,000 Americans die for lack of medical and health services: 120,000 from communicable diseases that might have been cured, 115,000 from cancer and heart disease that might have been prevented, 30,000 unnecessary maternal and infant deaths, 60,000 from other causes.

"If Not Impossible." The next Ewing point moved on to debatable ground. The trouble is, said he, that only 20% of U.S. families can afford all the medical care they need, although the U.S. is well supplied with doctors and hospitals. About half of the families (those with incomes of $3,000 or less) find it "hard, if not impossible" to pay for even routine medical care. The U.S. needs a lot more medical and health services, according to Ewing, than it is getting. By 1960, the Federal Government should be spending $2,313,000,000 a year (exclusive of Government health insurance), and state and local governments $1,795,000,000.

Ewing also outlined his case for compulsory insurance. He is convinced that voluntary plans are not and never will be enough (even though Blue Shield increased its membership 3,500% in eight years and, with Blue Cross, now has 37,500,000 members). Only about half the families in the U.S., Ewing argued, can afford even moderately complete health insurance on a voluntary basis.

Not Socialization. Ewing's crib-to-coffin plan would not be very different from Britain's socialized medicine scheme. During a three-year "tooling up" period, when only those now covered by social security would be eligible, the Government would collect up to 1% on the first $4,800 earned, taking half from employee and half from employer; eventually the rate would go to 4% when full medical service (doctors' fees, hospitalization, medicines, dental care) would be available to everybody.

Since Congress is not in session, the Ewing plan is not good for anything now but arguments. But it will inspire plenty of those.

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