Show The American Farm Family amity Is Now Enjoying the fhe I Conveniences and Benefits of Prepaid Hospital Care Through Blue Cross Hospital Service Plans I I By Ih to SCOTT SCOT WATSON WI l O ItI by byul Western ul rn NI ue Unman Union I is the story stor of the TIllS THIS rowing move move- mo moment mont ment in the country one that is adding to the tI health and tind un ponce peace o or of mine mind of or millions of Americans Sin Seen years i ago ngo fla there were fewer than of those Americans Today there arc ure more mo than more than one one- of our whole population und told and its it's likely that by the till end of the year that number will have risen to I This movement is group I hospital insurance which un un- under der ier the stimulation of war wm- wartime time conditions has become i iu a u a m year yem business And as us the th result of the Blue I Cross Hospital Service plan sponsored by the American Hospital association Mr John Jahn Q Citizen one of these has the assurance that should illness or acci acci- accident accident dent make malce hospital care necessary essary for him or 01 some mem mem- member member member ber of his family his pocket- pocket pocketbook pocketbook pocketbook book will hill not be bl suddenly mild and un devastatingly depleted And the peace of mind which comes from the time assurance of that fact has been purchased by John Q Q at It an nn average cost of less than five cents a n day clay I However the significant tact about this story for tor renders readers of this newspaper Is ts that tha t the group has hos hospital pith pital service plan has spread to the rural areas of the nation mid and Is rapidly becoming as ns common as ns It has hns been In metropolitan centers Of course It has always been true that farmers and members member of their families families lies get sick or have accidents Just Justas ns liS do factory workers The Slime same is true of employees of business firms In villages V and small towns In Intact tact fact both classes need help hell and often are less able to pay toy hospital bills than are arc the middle class or low-Income low groups In the big cities So there then was quite as lIS much reason for Tor their having the benefit of 01 low low- cost planned and prepaid hospital care tare as for tor their city cousins having It The principal reason why they I didn't get It sooner lay in certain factors which are the very heart ot of the planned td hospital core care Idea Of or those factors the word group Is la lathe the key First of at all enrollment of members mem memo members bers in such a plan has hus to be bl through groups and these groups hove have to bo bl belarge large enough so 10 that as os In any ony In Insurance In in- insurance of this one type their mem- mem members bers are lire good risks With the population population lation mouton so scattered in rural areas oreas it seemed that it would be bl utmost almost Im Im- Impossible Impossible possible either cither to enroll people or orto orto orto to make collections from them It t seemed also that groups would be so IO small and so no few that each sub sub- subscriber subscriber scriber would be In effect an on indi individual Individual vidual subscriber hence a hazard hazard- hazardous ous risk Then too It was believed that the people of 01 rural America especially farmers arc are such nil IncH individualists and Independent thinkers that they could not be enrolled in hospitalization groups large enough to be self seU Comes Conies the Blue Cross For these and other reasons the earliest plans for tor hospital care were concentrated in the big cities where large Industries whose em em- employees employees were numbered by the thc thou thou- thousands thousands thousands sands offered the best opportunity for handling such Insurance on a u group basis Then came the organization of or the Hospital Service Plan commission of the American Hospi Hospital tal association to sponsor the Blue lue Cross movement Blue Cross Is Isa Isa Isa a general term which Identifies the Ule 77 group plans for tor hospital care which meet the standards of com cam service professional span spon sponsorship profit non organization and financial solvency and which have been approved by the American Hos lias Hospital pital association Not only did the Blue Cross move movement movement ment expand the planned hospital care Idea In the cities but it was chiefly responsible for far Its moving out Into the Die country It spread to toI the smaller cities and towns first and I then out to the farms Its It's true that thaL I farmers are ore independent thinkers but as ns one of the pioneer workers I in the rural field has staled stated they I are arc also shrewd buyers and are quick to take toke to something once Its value has hal been proved So now farmers are being enrolled through banks with which they do business and which are willing to cooperate through their farm bureaus their granges their farmers farmers' unions co- co I S t IN a W V Vr r I 1 Sl IN Is United by b Mother mid and had Dud lilac Cross CroAK hospital plan Illan subscribers subscriber operatives creameries and other r well organized well tI farmer business asso associations cia In n the the- cities s. s workers who buy buying ing In hospital protection pay for lor It by payroll deduction Partners who en enroll roll through bunks authorize those institutions to souse make periodic deduc deductions liars from their checking or ur savings accounts to tu pay the tho required r fees lees Where they enroll through crease cream cries or cooperatives periodic de deductions are ur from fran their cream or grain checks and those wh win en CU- enroll I roll through the grange funs furin lIcau buteau or dinners dinners' union pay their fees on ona onn n a quarterly semiannual or annual basis i mostly the lure latter hitler two How flow the Iho 11 Works Although there ore are 77 different group croup plans Ii tans for tor hospital care cure and they thoy differ from each other In some sonic minor millor details hero here Is the line essen essen- essential essential method of or their operation The hospitals In u a certain region region city city county or hospital service to 10 Ulue lilac Cross subscribers whether they ore ire re members of 01 groups in iii factories city offices edu educational c u. u Institutions clubs union organizations or farm groups who have hove agreed to pay a II certain amount for this service at ot regular Intervals This amount varies somewhat ac ne ac- ac cording to tho the group croup plan Mem Mcm- Membership costs from to 1020 a year for tor or one person and from 1 15 UI to 24 21 a year for lor the member and unc his hla his hill wife wile and d all ali l unmarried children under tho the age oge o of 18 In Minnesota where the pioneer pioneer- lag Ine In work in farm enrollment wa was done there is a plan which otters offers a aman aman aman man complete coverage for tor himself and 50 per cent discounts for tor his hll wife and children at 12 a year plus 3 for each adult dependent In return for these payments the Insured or member of his Ills family who has to go to a hospital gets a semi private room his Ma meals gen general eral cral nursing anesthetics special diets dressings laboratory tests rays X-rays rays and aril operating room charges This does docs not noL include however the physicians physician's or 01 surgeons surgeon's fees He lie can enter any anyone one of 01 the country's approved registered hospitals that thatIs Is those hospitals recognized is liS meeting the standards of 01 the Ameri Amen American American can Medical association or state stole and local agencies If It for lor any reason one of these hos has hospitals cant can't take him in because of lack of room some of the plans pay hack buck double the years year's premium but many of them provide cash pay pay- payments ments for tor home care car equivalent to 10 the tho amount that the hospital care cure would have been worth warth However there have been very few Instances when a lIlue Blue Cross member couldn't Jet Ket et Into a 11 hospital the num num- number ber her of 01 these Institutions which par participate In III tho the plan is fa 2500 with 80 per cent of 01 the bed capacity of at all the hospitals in the tho United States Slates open to the public Reference has been made to the pioneering work done In Minnesota in rural enrollment in hospital plans It a began bc an In 1030 under the auspices of ot the farm larm bureau in county with 42 family contracts for fora a total service coverage of 00 per sons Since then farm bureau mem memo memberships in that state slate have Increased to contracts with per sons covered for tor hospital care These In local units In 01 61 coun coun- counties counties ties have found d the plan highly suc sue successful and satisfactory There are 87 counties in the state sta te and a total of 1200 farm bureau burea u units so that three three fourths fourths of all the counties In Minnesota now have units enrolled in the Ule Blue Cross and more than one fourth of the units are already protecting themselves against sud sud- sudden sudden den hospItalization costs I From Minnesota 1 farm larm bureau sponsorship of prepaid hospital care has spread to other states slates notably J Kansas ansas Missouri 1 Nebraska North Dakota and ami Oklahoma llla until now nowhere there here are ure 15 In which farm bureau federation members may take ad ad- advantage vantage of lIlue Blue Cross plans plaits through their unit groups In hr December ID 12 the American Farm bureau nt lit its lis ts annual meeting In Chicago wrote Into Its nationwide program of work n a strong Indorsement of the non non- prom group hospital care plans and other rural health developments tint lot lend themselves to t farm family unit action However the farm form bureau Is not the he only agency through which tho lute I hospital plan Is being carried curried to the lure farms arms of 01 tho the n tIlI In n ule county Mich the till Farmers Mutual Insurance company a u cooperative co co- cooperative cooperative operative was used as os the already already- established group through which to put the tho hospital plan Into operation In northern Illinois the Northern Illinois Hospital service serving servin 11 counties and their small towns ranging In population from to 1500 1000 have havo worked In operation co-operation co with Rotary Kiwanis and Lions clubs with women's clubs PTAs Veterans of ot Foreign Wars posts and churches farm arm bureaus home I bureaus and granges As a result in I these 11 lL counties more than loa farm families representing 00 individuals are arc or Blue Cross members Combined Groups Group In n North Carolina a II great many o othe of the small groups In the Ule small towns town are arc enrolled as combined business groups This type of enrollment means combining many small bust busi businesses nesses riesses Into a II group getting 75 per percent percent percent cent or more mOle of the In these various small concerns to be be- beI I come members of ot the Blue Cross In some somo of these combined groups group as ninny many as lIS persons join These groups consist of drug dru stores gro gro- grocery grocery grocery cery stores warehouses etc The Tho has also been active In lit cooper cooper- cooperating cooperating oUng with the Blue Cross plans in North Carolina and otter other states in bringing prepaid hospital care core to low Income families Indicative of ot the tho way in which small town and rural America is enlisting under the Blue Ulue Cross ban ban- banner banner ner ncr arc ore these facts taken at ot random from many examples In one Iowa town of at population or 75 per percent percent percent cent have hove enrolled In a II hospital care core plan pion and in another town of n q total of 01 2214 or 50 per cent have joined In n one Wisconsin community the local power company acts as os collector and ond remitting agent and the people of the community who have enrolled pay for tor this insurance Insurance ance once along with their monthly elec electric bills This town has u II population population tion of 1000 and out of a possible persons employed In the town have enrolled there being LOS family contracts and 41 individual In contracts Such instances Instance could be he multi multiplied plied Indefinitely From Irom all aU of which It is evident that rural America is indeed shrewd buyers and quick to take to something once its value has been proved As for proving its value ask the Clue Blue Cross member in New York state stale who was recently hospitalized for 53 days ills His con can contract contract I tract covered him for 23 days ol of one contract year and 28 days of ol the new year a total of at 51 days Ills Ibis total hospital bill blU was When he was wall ready to be discharged from tram the hospital he was handed a hospital service credit of That meant he had to pay in cash ca to the hospital only 1225 Its a thrill that comes once in ina Ina Ina a lifetime he said And then quite naturally he be added I r think hos hos- hospital hospital hospital pital service is I. a great treat idea |