A National Health Service: The British White Paper

T H E BRITISH W H I T E PAPER on a National Health Service was made public on February 17 . In it the Minister of Health and the Secretary of Sta te for Scotland recommend the establishment of a National Health Service "which will provide for everyone all the medical advice, t rea tment and care they may require." The proposals are offered a t this time for discussion in Par l iament and in the country but not as fixed decisions. "The Government will welcome constructive criticism and they hope t h a t the next stage—the stage of consultat ion and public discussion—will enable them to submit quickly to Pa r l iament legislative proposals which will be largely agreed." The British Medical Association has given the proposals a "cautious welcome" and plans to send a copy of the White Paper, together with an analysis of it in relation to the pr inciples already adopted by the profession and a questionnaire prepared by the British Inst i tute of Public Opinion, to every doctor, whether civilian or in the armed forces, a t home or abroad, member or nonmember of the Association. The Prime Minister, speaking to the Royal College of Physicians on March 2, emphasized the desire of the Government for constructive criticism of the plan. "We ask your aid. We invite your counsel."