MINORITY REPORT. 
317 
88. We cannot pass from this subject without referring to the 
increased difficulties with which the transfer of the administration 
of these benefits from Approved Societies will be faced if the 
administration has been allowed to develop through these bodies 
to the extent foreshadowed by the valuation figures. 
89. The dental benefit which we recommend should form part 
of medical benefit might at the outset be of such ‘‘ partial 
service '’ as may be organised within the estimate of £21 millions 
a year and we recommend that existing surpluses should be 
brought into the scheme for the provision of such service. 
90. We now come to our recommendation that medical benefit 
as extended should be available for the dependants of insured 
persons. It is estimated that the cost of providing for dependants 
a service equivalent “o the present medical benefit would be 
£9,500,000 a year. We submit, however, that the net cost 
would be a very much smaller amount. From the statement of 
evidence submitted by the Ministry of Health as to the scope and 
inter-relations of the various health services in England and 
Wales supported by public funds (Appendix CIV) it was shown 
that the expenditure on medical services other than those 
associated with mental infirmity amounted to £16,700,000 and 
the expenditure on medical benefit amounts to about £92 
millions a year. We have thus an expenditure of £26 millions 
a year, if to which is added the eight millions spent on mental 
infirmity, brings us to the sum of £34,000,000 a year for public 
medical services of ene kind or another, of which only a small 
proportion is borne by the Exchequer. Having regard to the ex- 
penditure by the hospitals and payments to medical practitioners 
in private practice, we see no reason to doubt the statement made 
by the National Association of Trade Union Approved Societies 
(Q. 22,046) that apart from the indirect cost to the nation 
resulting from the limited character of the medical benefit wo 
insured persons and the absence of such services to their 
dependants, the nation is spending £40,000,000, possibly even 
£60,000,000 a vear on medical services. 
91. The case for the co-ordination of all forms of Public 
Medical Services is to be found in the Majority Report signed by 
our colleagues. We therefore need not do more at this point 
than emphasise the conclusion that such co-ordination ‘‘ should 
tend to diminish disease and sickness *’ (Maclachlan, Q. 24,226), 
that ‘“ an effective scheme for the treatment of tuberculosis can- 
not be confined to one section of the community *’ (Maclachlan, 
Q. 24,092), that the present scheme ‘‘has almost certainly reduced 
national sickness ’’ (British Medical Association, Q. 14,618) and 
that ‘“ medically the Insurance Acts have educated the population.’’ 
(Brock, Q. 23.852). We believe it to be unquestionable that a 
general improvement in the standard of national health has been