Paying for the National Health Service.
—Under this heading, a review of the National Health Service costs appeared in an editorial in the British Medical Journal of March 3, 1951. For many years before 1948, the British Medical Association had been working out its own ideas for a comprehensive medical service. It was more concerned with the organization of such a service than with the economics of it. In general however, on a basis of experience gained by the National Health Insurance the Association was in favor of an insurance scheme.As the Minister of Health, Mr. Hilary Marquand, usefully reminded the country a few days ago, insurance contributions accounted for only $112,000,000 of the $1,120,000,000 that is now the annual bill for the National Health Service. Ninety per cent of this cost is paid for by the public out of taxation; that is, by the bulk of the wage