OCR Text |
Show CONGRESS GROUP EXPOSES "HEALTH WORKSHOPS" by Emmett G. Bedford Amid the spectacular developments of the Senate investigations inves-tigations of wartime frauds and the recent house probe of un-American actitivities in Hollywood, the cleverly disguised campaign of a group in the employment of the U. S. government, govern-ment, in some cases known Communists, using federal funds to organize so-called health workshops as pressure groups for advocating socialized medicine, is escaping the notice of the most alert observers. According to an exposure by a House subcommittee, this activity, presenting one sided propaganda urging socialization socializa-tion of medicine as outlined in the Wagner-Murray-Dingell bill, increased expenditures of the executive branch of the government for propaganda and publicity purposes 300 per cent over previous years to the sum of $75,000,000 and occupied occu-pied 45,000 federal employees part or full time. The findings of the subcommittee, approved unanimously unanimous-ly by the bi-partisan committee on expenditures in the executive execu-tive departments, bare the true nature and purpose of health workshops. The committee report to the House of Representatives states: "Your committee finds that at least six agencies in the executive branch are using government funds in an improper im-proper manner for propaganda activities supporting compulsory compul-sory national health insurance, or what certain authors of propaganda refer to as. socialized medicine: U,. S. Public Health Service, Children's Bureau, Office of Education, U. S. Employment Service, Dept. of Agriculture, and Bureau of Research and Statistics, Social Security Board. These activities are calculated to build up an artificial, federally stimulated public demand upon Congress for enactment en-actment of legislation for compulsory health insurance referred re-ferred to as the Wagner-Murray-Dingell bill. These health workshops were planned, conducted and largely financed with federal funds by a key group on the government payroll who used the workshop method of discussion subtly to generate public sentiment in behalf of socialized medicine. "The federal employees arrange the meeting, invite the delegates, train the delegates, preside at the meetings and then frame the formal summary of resolutions and actions. Among the topics listed in the instruction sheets used by the training officers at these (so-called) health workshops are: Techniques for the Organization of Citizen Groups Formation of Pressure Groups Methods of Bringing about Group Action And all of this is paid for with public moneys never authorized author-ized or approved by Congress for these or any like purposes." Among federal workers advocating compulsory health insurance the committee found one "documented by the House committee on un-American activities for almost uninterrupted uninterrupt-ed association, since 1939, with various Contmunist-front and fellow-traveler organizations in the United States. At various times . . . Jacob Fisher has been identified with seven different dif-ferent groups or organizations avowedly sponsoring the Moscow Mos-cow party line in the United States. "Your committee reports its firm conclusion, that American Am-erican Communism holds this program as a cardinal point in its objectives; and that in some instances, known Communists Commu-nists and fellow travelers within the federal agencies are at work diligently with federal funds in furtherance of the Moscow party line." How these federally paid advocates of socialized medicine medi-cine have laid the groundwork for a propaganda campaign in Utah is revealed in brief but highly significant news stories. A Utah health workshop was held in the State Capitol building, October, 1945. Eight federal officials were flown here, to conduct this meeting. Other than federally employed doctors, there were no allopathic physicians or representatives representa-tives of other healing art3 present as delegates at this meet. A meeting in the State Capitol on Nov. 8, 1947, of state, health and welfare agency representatives for the purpose of discussing health workshops reportedly attracted representatives represen-tatives from Red Cross, Parent-Teacher Associations, Cancer Society, Association for Infantile Paralysis Prevention and other philanthropic organizations together with representatives representa-tives of Utah colleges, junior colleges and school districts. Three days later a committee of educators, school administrators ad-ministrators and public health officials started preparation of a health education workshop "on state level", to be held during the first six months of 1948. ' At a time when our way of life is threatened by Communism Com-munism and undemocratic processes of government, which recent history so chillingly proves are harbingers of police state methods, it behooves every American to resist such underhand and illegal methods. The place to start is in our own state of Utah where already al-ready an attempt is being made to trap unwary Utah leaders into furthering the efforts of what a House committee labeled label-ed a Communist-indorsed pressure group for socialized medicine medi-cine under the subterfuge of the "health workshop." |