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AMENDMENTS

HEARING

BEFORE THE

COMMITTEE ON MILITARY AFFAIRS UNITED STATES SENATE

SEVENTY-EIGHTH CONGRESS

FIRST SESSION

ON

S. 1131

A BILL TO AMEND THE SERVICEMEN'S DEPENDENTS
ALLOWANCE ACT OF 1942, SO AS TO PROVIDE FOR AN
INCREASE OF 15 PER CENTUM IN THE AMOUNT
OF THE GOVERNMENT'S CONTRIBUTION TO
THE DEPENDENTS OF ENLISTED MEN
ENTITLED TO FAMILY ALLOWANCES
UNDER SUCH ACT

AND

S. 1279

A BILL TO AMEND THE SERVICEMEN'S DEPENDENTS
ALLOWANCE ACT OF 1942, AS AMENDED, SO AS
TO LIBERALIZE FAMILY ALLOWANCES,
AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES

88304

JUNE 28, 1943

Printed for the use of the Committee on Military Affairs

UNITED STATES
GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE

WASHINGTON: 1943

COMMITTEE ON MILITARY AFFAIRS

ROBERT R. REYNOLDS, North Carolina, Chairman

ELBERT D. THOMAS, Utah
EDWIN C. JOHNSON, Colorado
LISTER HILL, Alabama

SHERIDAN DOWNEY, California
ALBERT B. CHANDLER, Kentucky
HARRY S. TRUMAN, Missouri
MON C. WALLGREN, Washington
HARLEY M. KILGORE, West Virginia
JAMES E. MURRAY, Montana
JOSEPH C. O'MAHONEY, Wyoming

WARREN R. AUSTIN, Vermont
STYLES BRIDGES, New Hampshire
CHAN GURNEY, South Dakota
RUFUS C. HOLMAN, Oregon

HENRY CABOT LODGE, JR., Massachusetts
CHAPMAN REVERCOMB, West Virginia
GEORGE A. WILSON, Iowa

WESLEY E. McDONALD, Clerk
WALTER I, SMALLEY, Special Assistant

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Colonel IJAMS. Equipment, the transportation of the man to and from the institution, and all other expense in connection with his domiciliary care.

Senator TRUMAN. You say $1.11?

Colonel IJAMS. $1.11 for domiciliary care.

Senator TRUMAN. What is it for hospitalization?

Colonel IJAMS. For the fiscal year ending June 30, 1942, the hos pital per diem costs, for operation of hospital facilities used, principally for the treatment of tuberculosis, are $4.37. Those used exclusively for the treatment of neuropsychiatric conditions is $2.02. Those used largely for the treatment of general medical and surgical conditions, $4.24. Collectively, the per diem cost of operation of the hospital facilities of all types is $2.96. The per diem cost for operating domiciliary facilities as previously stated is $1.11.

Senator BRIDGES. May I ask you in that connection, in reckoning those costs, for instance, you specialize, the Federal hospital specializes in the treatment of, we will say, tuberculosis; what percentage of the hospitals that you referred to, that are operated by the Federal Government, are general hospitals and what percentage are special hospitals?

Colonel IJAMS. We divide our hospitals, Senator, into three classes: General medical and surgical, tuberculosis, and neuropsychiatric. Altogether there are 93 hospitals, with several building now, and many additions being added at the present time to existing facilities.

NOTE. At the present time we operate 13 T. B. hospitals with a bed capacity of 5,719; also 29 neuropsychiatric hospitals with a bed capacity of 33,824, and 51 general medical and surgical hospitals with a bed capacity of 22,257. All of these figures will be increased as we find it necessary to meet the needs for World War No. II veterans.

We maintain the type of hospital that is needed to fill the need of the local community-and when I speak of community I mean a large community, not one individual State. We do not draw State lines.

If we did that we would have to have at least a general medical hospital, tuberculosis hospital, and neuropsychiatric hospital in every State in the Union and the cost would be prohibitive.

Senator MURRAY. Cannot you take care of the three classes in the same institution in some States?

Colonel IJAMS. Senator, that is a very difficult thing and goes into a medical subject which has been discussed by the various medical associations for a long time. We do have certain combinations. For instance, we will have a psychiatric hospital and certain wards devoted to a combination of psychiatric condition and tuberculosis. Unfortunately in those cases if you cure either disability you still have a total loss.

Senator MURRAY. I do not see why you could not handle the psychiatric patients as well as the tuberculosis patients, for instance, in the State of Montana which has a climate very suitable to the treatment of tuberculosis cases.

Colonel IJAMS. Most psychiatric cases have to be maintained in locked wards. They are very, very noisy cases, as you can appreciate. It would not be fair to a tuberculosis patient to be in close proximity to those wards.

Senator MURRAY. In places like in Helena, Mont., where you have thousands of acres of land, you could spread them around there. Colonel IJAMS. Surely.

Senator BRIDGES. May I ask you one other question. How many States in the Union have no veterans' hospital at the present time? Colonel IJAMS. I think there are two or three States at the present time with no veterans' hospital facilities.

Senator BRIDGES. What States are those?

Colonel IJAMS. Delaware, Rhode Island, and—

Senator BRIDGES. New Hampshire. That is the point I wanted to make.

Senator GURNEY. Colonel Ijams, I would like to have you state something with regard to the treatment of out-patients. Who is eligible for out-patient treatment at the veterans' hospitals?

Colonel IJAMS. Out-patient treatment may be given only to veterans suffering from service-connected disabilities, who require treatment for those disabilities. A veteran suffering from a non-service-connected disability may be hospitalized under the law as an in-patient and treated, but we cannot give him out-patient treatment.

Senator MURRAY. What do you mean by "in-patient" treatment? Colonel IJAMS. An in-patient is a man occupying a bed in the institution. Out-patient treatment is treatment which may be given by the man coming to the hospital, seeing the doctor in the clinic, having his throat sprayed, or some minor assistance of that character. Senator GURNEY. Let me get this straight now.

A veteran with a service-connected disability can get out-patient treatment of service? Colonel IJAMS. That is correct. sir.

Senator GURNEY. Can he not also get in-patient service?

Colonel IJAMS. Yes. I was merely limiting my statement to those who could get the out-patient treatment.

Senator GURNEY. I want to make the record clear.

Colonel IJAMS. The service-connected case can receive either outpatient or in-patient service, and he is given preference for in-patient treatment over others.

Senator GURNEY. Over non-service-connected cases?

Colonel IJAMS. Yes.

Senaor GURNEY. That clears the record. Thank you.

Senator LODGE. Colonel Ijams, could you furnish a list of the categories of veterans who are cared for in State veteran homes and who are not cared for in Federal veterans' institutions?

Colonel IJAMS. We will be glad to do so, Senator.

Senator LODGE. You mentioned the Confederate veteran.

Colonel IJAMS. That is right, and various others.

Senator LODGE. Then you have got the wives?

Colonel IJAMS. The wives, and in some cases, the dependent children.

Senator LODGE. Of Confederate veterans?

Colonel IJAMS. I am thinking of Union veterans, or World War I

veterans.

Senator LODGE. Then there are the veterans of these various campaigns that have been held while the country was not at war. Colonel IJAMS. That is right.

Senator LODGE. Like the Nicaraguan campaign, and so forth.

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