Individual Versus Group Medical CareAuthor(s): B.I.G.Source: The Scientific Monthly, Vol. 52, No. 3 (Mar., 1941), pp. 289-290Published by: American Association for the Advancement of ScienceStable URL: http://www.jstor.org/stable/17246 .

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THIE PROGRESS OF SCIIENCE 289

veniiently be wideined with the automatie drive by setting its rate slightly off from th,e eorreet rate.

For some purposes, sLueh as the de- termiilatioll of the magnitudes an'd col- our indices of faint stars, very perfect images are needed for the prod-uction of which our autzomatic drive is not quite accurate enough. Also, the work with some of the filters requires exposure times

much longer than 30 minutes durinlg which the differential refraction both in declination and right ascension may be- come appreciable. In this special case it is niecessary to consult from time to time the guide telescope and to reset the position of the main tube in declination an-d hour angles as well as to change the rate of the drive.

E. J. POITRAs and F. ZWICKY

INDIVIDUAL VERSUS GROUP MEDICAL CARE

NATIONAL interest is being centered upon the trial in Washington, D. C., of the Ameriean Medieal Assoeiation on charges of vio:lating the Sherman Anti- Trust Act by "boycotting " the Group Healtlh Associatioll, a local medical co- operative. The trial, which opened on February 5, is not expected to endl be- fore the middle of M:arch, and, regard- less of the verdlict, it will probably exert considerable influience upon the practice of medicine hi the United States.

The immediate occasioln for the trial was the attitude of the American Medical Association anid three other miedical or- ganizations towards the establishmelnt of the Group H:ealth Association in Wash- ington. Typical of a number of medical cooperatives springing up throughout the country, this group sought to carry out a plan whereby the services of physi- cians and the facilities of clinics should be pooled ancd made available to sub- scribers on th-e basis of monthly pay- ments. The Group hIealth Association, originally organized oni an unofficial basis among employees of the feederal government, received a $40,000 loan from the government Home Owners' Corporation anld now has a memibership of about 3,000.

The Trust DL)ivision of the U. S. De- partment of Justice, which is acting as prosecutor i:n this case, accused fonr medical societies and twenty individcuals of monopolistic practices in coercing hos- pitals and inidi-vidual physicians into re-

fusing to treat G. H. A. patients. The four medical societies named in the in- dictment were the American Medical Association, the Medical Society of the District of Columbia, the Washington Academy of Surgery anLd the Harris CounLty Medical Society of Texas. Fif- teen of the individuals indicted are physicians practicinig in Washington, while the others consist mainly of offi- cials of the American Medical Associa- tion, ineluding Dr. Morris Fishbein, editor of the Association's Journal, and Dr. Olinl West, secretary and general manager of the Association.

The alleged "boycott" had gone on for two years when indictments were returned against the physicianls and the medical organizations. These indiet- ments were at first held invalid by the District Court on the ground that the practice of medicine was not a "trade" within the meaning of the Sherman Anti-Trust Act, but this ruling was re- versed in 'March, 1940, by the Federal Court of Appeals, which upheld the in- dietment. The United States Supreme Court refused to reverse the ruling again, and remanded the case to the District Court for trial.

The views of the contending parties were elaborated in tlhe preliminary state- ments made at the opening of the trial by attorneys for both sides. John H. Leewin, special assistant to the attorney- general, accused the defendant-s of ob- structing the organization of the Health

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290 THE SCIENTIFIC AIONTHLY

Group and of handicapping its work. The District Medical Society, for ex- ample, was alleged to have sought to " erush and destroy " the G. H. A. by preventing any of its members fron joining the new clinice's staff, by ob- structing attempts to staff the clinic with non-members of the society, by per- sonal attacks on the men who did join the staff, anld by inducing all the local hospitals to join in the boycott by re- fusing courtesy privileges to G. H. A. practitioners. He announeed that the first witnesses on his side would consist of well-known liberal surgeons who have been prominent in the group health mlovement and who wouldl stress the social advalitages of the plan.

William E. Leahy, counsel for the defense, criticized the maniagement of

the Group Health Association. He ae- cused its founders of being motivated by commercial muotives, and said that it was dedicated to the disruption of the traditions of the mnedical profession. He accused the cooperative of seeking to wipe out opposition to its medico-eco- nomic theories by undermiining the American Medical Association and the District Medical Society. He accused medical cooperatives of beinog economi- cally unsound and unable to provide patients with the care they promised. He denied the allegations that the med- ical societies had sought to hamper the cooperative's activities. Refusals of hos- pitals to allow G. H. A. practitiollers to operate in their buildings were stated to have been mnotivated solely by a desire to keep their stalidards high. B.I.G.

NEW AUDITORIUM AT THE COLORADO MUSEUM

IN the closiiig years of the last cen- tury, in a picturesque log cabin in the heart of the Rocky Mountains, a small collection of moulnted birds and animals was assembled by lovers of the fauna of the West. Fromi these humble begiii- nings the collection rapidly grew until it attracted state-wide attention, anld in 1900 it was incorporated as the Colorado Museum of Natural History. A large museum building was constructed in 1908, with funcds supplied by the state ancd by the city of Denver, to house the expandling collections of the museum. Every ten years since that date has seen the construction of new additions to the museum's plant. In 1918 the Standley Memorial Wing was constructed, in 1928 the James Memorial Wiing was built, ancd the Phipps AuLditorium-the newest ad- dition-was begun in 1938.

The Phipps Auditorium, a new wing to the main building of the Colorado Museum of Natural History, was opened recently in Denver. The dedication ceremnonies took place on January 11 and included speeches by the governor of

Colorado, the mayor of Denver, the di- rector of the museum ancd other digni- taries.

The wing is named in honor of former United States Senator Lawrence Phipps, of Denver, who presented $137,500 to the museum to construet the auditoriunm. In presenting the gift, Senator Phipps stated that he "had long appreciated the desirability of a suitable auditorium which would fulfil cultural needs by making a common meeting place for those initerested in arts and sciences. " A grant of $112,500 by the Public Works Administration supplemented Senator Phlipps's gift.

The buildiing, designed by Roland L. Linder, is 98 feet long and 140 feet wilde, and seats one thousand people. Space is provided for a coneert organ and the stage can accommodate a seventy-five piece orchestra. The latest type of standard and 16 mlillimneter motion pic- ture projection equipmlent has been in- stalled, so that educational programs for adults and children may be presented. Motion picture programs have been ar-

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