The cost of hospital and related institutional care for the aging is high. In 1960, it was $222 million, almost one-third of the total for all such care, for only 10.5 percent of the population.R Moreover, by 1970 New York City will require 15,000 new long-term institutional beds for the aged at a cost of about $180 million for construction only. APPENDIX B. ENDORSEMENTS OF THE COMMUNITY COUNCIL'S POLICY STATEMENT ON HEALTH CARE OF THE AGED Columbus Hospital. Gouverneur Ambulatory Care Unit Social Service Division. Hebrew Home and Hospital for Chronic Sick. Home and Hospital of the Daughters of Israel. New York Infirmary, Social Service Department. St. Mary's Hospital, Social Service Department. RECREATION CENTERS (13) Brooklyn War Memorial Recreation Center. Bronxdale Community Center. East Harlem Day Center for Older People. East Side House Settlement, Mill Brook Center. East Tremont YM-YWHA. Forest Neighborhood House. Golden Age Club of the Jewish Center of Kew Garden Hills. Hudson Guild. Owen F. Dolen Park, Golden Age Center. Red Hook Day Center. The Salvation Army Senior Citizens' Club. YM and YWHA of Williamsburg, Senior Adult Division. NEIGHBORHOOD COUNCILS AND CIVIC ASSOCIATIONS (8) Brownsville Neighborhood Health and Welfare Council. East Harlem Council for Community Planning, Committee on Aging. Kissena Flushing Homeowners Association. Red Hook Neighborhood Council. Sheepshead Bay Civic and Community Council. OTHER (22) Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority. Bronx County Society for Mental Health. Childville, Inc. Church of All Nations, Board of Directors. Clinical Services of the William Alanson White Institute of Psychiatry, Psychoanalysis, and Psychology. Italian Welfare League. Jewish Community Services of Long Island. Jewish Family Service. Musicians Aid Society. National Association of Social Workers, New York City Chapter. New York Clinic for Mental Health. New York Hotel Trades Council, AFL-CIO. New York State Psychological Association. Optometric Center of New York. The Salvation Army, Social Welfare Department. Selfhelp of Emigres From Central Europe, Inc. Sidney Hillman Health Center. Society of St. Vincent De Paul. Tolstoy Foundation, Inc. United Help, Inc. APPENDIX C. CORPORATE MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY COUNCIL OF GREATER NEW YORK American Red Cross in Greater New York. Brooklyn Bureau of Social Service & Children's Aid Society. Brooklyn Tuberculosis & Health Association, Inc. Catholic Charities, Diocese of Brooklyn. Catholic Charities of the Archdiocese of New York. Children's Aid Society. Citizens' Housing & Planning Council of New York, Inc. Commerce & Industry Association of New York, Inc. Federation of Jewish Philanthropies of New York. Federation of Protestant Welfare Agencies, Inc. The Greater New York Fund, Inc. Hospital Council of Greater New York, Inc. New York Chamber of Commerce. New York City Central Labor Council, AFL-CIO. United Neighborhood Houses of New York, Inc. Arnold S. Askin Mrs. Rodman W. Austin Rev. Albert B. Buchanan J. Clarence Davies, Jr. James Felt Mrs. Albert Francke, Jr. Mrs. Randolph Guggenheimer BOARD OF DIRECTORS Very Rev. Msgr. Edward D. Head Mrs. Paul T. Kammerer, Jr. Rt. Rev. Msgr. Francis J. Mugavero Juan Sanchez Martin F. Shea Rush Taggart Rev. M. Moran Weston Hon. Herman Badillo Hon. Calvin E. Gross Hon. George James, M.D. Hon. Anna M. Kross Hon. Milton Mollen Hon. Marvin E. Perkins, M.D. Hon. Ray E. Trussell, M.D. Executive director, James W. Fogarty Chairman, Walter J. Lear, M.D. Naomi M. Weiss Citizens' Committee on Aging: Chairman, Judge Matthew J. Troy Howard A. Seitz ELEANOR ROOSEVELT GOLDEN RING CENTER, THE HOUSE WAYS AND MEANS COMMITTEE, Washington, D.C. GENTLEMEN: We represent over 200 retired senior citizens. We have worked all our adult years, and although we have helped create the wealth of our Nation, now that we are retired, we are in terrible fear lest sickness befall us. Some of us have no insurance coverage at all, and even those who do have partial insurance (none have full coverage), do not know how we would manage in case of sickness-even in case of a 30-day hospital stay. Ours is the richest country in the world, yet it is the only modern country that does not provide adequate health insurance for its elder citizens. All the Western European countries have such coverage. Please help us place the King-Anderson bill before the U.S. Legislature. Let the people's representatives decide about the bill, and not a single committeethis is the way of democracy. Please remember, old people cannot wait, it may be too late. Pass the KingAnderson bill now. Kindly read this message before the hearing committee, and place it in the hearing records. Respectfully yours, MORRIS GOLDOVSKY, President. STATEMENT OF THE EAST HARLEM DAY CENTER ON THE NEED FOR MEDICAL CARE UNDER SOCIAL SECURITY GENERAL INTRODUCTION We, the older people of East Harlem, are in dire need of better medical attention. We have fought hard in the past to attain our medical rights but to no avail. Now national attention has been focused on the plight of the older citizen by the late President Kennedy's message to Congress, existing medical plans are inadequate or like the Kerr-Mills plan, work against the older person's sense of dignity and independence. We are asking only for a fair return on the years As of hard work we have contributed to our Nation's growth and prosperity. one member of the East Harlem Day Center put it, "We hold life too dear to be cheated of it." The older citizen has played a major role in his country's past and present-he is now fighting to be part of its future. As the life expectancy increases it becomes obvious that long life is only one-half of the story. We want not just to live longer but to live better. The older person is haunted by the fear of chronic illness. Independence and security are main factors in deciding whether the later years will be a time of continued growth and appreciation of life's possibilities. Worry and anxiety over what will happen to us in the face of a prolonged illness can turn the later years into a nightmare. Here are some examples of hope turned to despair as the result of our present means of providing medical care. Mrs. W. and her husband, both in their early seventies, faced the future with hope and confidence since they had managed to put away a few dollars to support themselves. Their savings disqualified them for medical aid under the Kerr-Mills plan. Mrs. W. fell ill with cancer. For 2 years they struggled to pay doctor and hospital bills. Mr. W. passed away and Mrs. W., burdened down with grief for her husband, found herself poverty stricken. Prolonged illness is a tragedy in itself. If the older person must worry over not just the loved one who is ill but the financial problems that result, life becomes an unbearable burden. Another case is Mr. L. who recovered from a serious illness only to find that the savings he and his wife had worked their whole lives to accumulate had been wiped out in their battle against the disease. Now Mr. L. has his physical health but the mental anguish he and his wife suffered in their effort to maintain themselves has changed two hopeful and proud people into a fearful and dependent couple. These are only two examples. There are thousands more. By 1980 there will be over 25 million Americans 60 years and over. Let us fight and win the battle for better medical care now so that they may live with dignity and peace of mind in their later years. Existing medical conditions often turn the older citizen into a victim rather than a patient. Endless lines at the clinic, the same endless lines at the dispensary become unbearable for the older patient. The high cost of drugs often puts recovery beyond the reach of the ailing older citizen. Many times the older patient cannot benefit from the medical aid offered him because he needs time and advice to understand the best treatment for himself. Doctors who are too busy and clinics that are understaffed cannot provide the attention needed by the older person. Most of us in this community cannot afford the luxury of private visits but we are also finding out that we cannot afford the neglect we often meet at the clinic. Another aspect of good medical care for the older person is the need for home care services. We want to remain an active part of our community as long as possible. Hospitalization or institutionalization removes the older citizen from his familiar surrounding and at the same time it costs the community a great expense. Homemaker services, hospital home care service, and a visiting nurse service are all ways of helping the older person meet his medical needs while still remaining an involved and living member of his community. We, the older people of East Harlem, feel that our medical needs are our medical rights. We feel we do not deserve to live in the shadow of fear for our remaining years of life. After examining the evidence we have come to the conclusion that the KingAnderson bill best fulfills our needs. Science has provided the means for the older person to live longer. It is now up to our Congress to provide the means so that the older person may live better. PART 2 The older citizen is tired of being a political football. Congressmen, mayors. Governors, and even the President have spoken of our need for adequate and fair medical coverage yet, when it came time to vote last year, the King-Anderson bill was defeated. This year the bill may not even have a chance to see the light of the congressional hall. If this proposal for medical care under the Social Security Act dies in committee; if elected Representatives blatantly ignore or neglect to face this bill, we can only conclude that this great and prosperous Nation has chosen to treat its older members as second-class citizens. There is an existing medical care program called the Kerr-Mills bill and the opponents of the King-Anderson proposal usually clamor for its virtues. But the Kerr-Mills plan has two aspects that rob it of its effectiveness and social value. First The Kerr-Mills plan calls for the application of a means test to prove that the applicant is unable to meet any of his expenses. Since any savings in excess of $900 would automatically disqualify an applicant we feel the bill is unrealistic in its refusal to meet the problem of chronic illness. Nine hundred dollars may seem like a lot of money to a healthy person who can look forward to further years of income but to the older person who falls chronically ill $900 can appear pitifully inadequate. Besides not being practical the means test is an affront to our dignity and self-respect. Many of us have worked hard all our lives to be able to enjoy the leisure of our later years. Shall we be penalized because we planned ahead for a time of rest and new freedom? We do not want to be dependent, yet this bill calls for us to be without any means of self-support before we qualify for aid. The mere thought of the formal process involved in administering a means test is enough to discourage many older citizens from applying for aid. The means test implies that decent medical coverage is a privilege that should be extended to the poor only. We insist that good medical care is the right of every senior citizen, regardless of financial condition. The second objection we have to the Kerr-Mills plan is that it calls for the children to be responsible for their parent's medical expenses. But those of us who have watched our children struggle to start their own lives and raise their own families shudder at the thought of becoming a burden to those we least wish to depend on. Our children deserve the right to care for their own needs and we deserve and want the right to remain independent members of the community. There is no reason why the senior citizen should become a family problem. Those who support the KerrMills plan forget that along with physical health there goes mental health, and while this bill may seem to be interested in providing medical coverage it is destructive to the living of an independent and productive old age. The King-Anderson bill which will provide medical care under the Social Security Act fulfills not only our medical needs more effectively but it does not spiritually force us to our knees. The administration of social benefits through the provisions of this act have proven successful in the fields of employment and disability. There is no reason to think it will not be as successful in solving this problem with dignity and respect for the individual. The health needs of senior citizens as the previous speaker stated we believe that our health needs are our health rights. Medicare will provide us with our entitled share of the good life. We are American citizens who have given much to our Nation. We are human beings who must face the problem of aging as a necessary part of the life processes and we need to meet the onslaught of illness that old age is heir to. These are our arguments. We need no means test to qualify us. The medicare proposal includes provisions for home-care service, educational programs, and reduced and available drugs. In short, the bill is both physically and mentally sound. Just as Federal concern has turned to meet the challenge of a nation growing older, so has the State government. Unfortunately, the results have been the same. Governor Rockefeller has argued publicly in favor of the Kerr-Mills plan and while he promised action on the problem, the State legislature adjourned last week with no comment on the subject. It is true that there are powerful forces fighting the adoption of the medicare proposal. Ironically, the American Medical Association is the leading force against the bill. They label it socialized medicine and refuse to listen to the social realities that clearly call for the adoption of the medicare proposal. We cannot believe that men who work under the sacred commandments of the hippocratic oath can turn away from our need. Yet no matter how powerful the forces be that work against us, the senior citizen will keep fighting for his right to a later life of dignity and peace of mind. We are not too old to become angry and we are tired of hollow promises. Every one of you here may some day be facing our problem. Help us win the struggle for medicare this year so that the later years may truly be a time of new freedom and renewed hope. |