284

MAJORITY REPORT.

(69) That Section 13 (5) of the Act should be amended so
as to provide that an illness shall not be treated as a continuation
of a former illness if in the period of 12 months immediately
preceding the commencement of the illness the insured person
has had quly short periods of incapacity amounting to not more
than six days in the aggregate. (para. 487.)
(70) That in the case of insured persons who, during incapacity,
 are inmates of any of the institutions mentioned in
Section 17 of the Act the amount of accumulated sickness and
disablement benefit payable to the insured person on leaving
the institution, or to his legal representatives on his death in
the institution, shall be limited to £50, and that the balance of
the accumulated benefit over and above this sum shall be paid
into the Central Fund at yearly or half-yearly intervals. (para.
491.)
(71) That any sum representing accumulated sickness and
disablement benefit payable to an insured person on leaving an
institution shall, in all cases, be paid in instalments at a weekly
rate equal to the rate of sickness benefit normally payable by
the Society of which he is a member. (para. 495.)
(72) That the attention of Societies should be directed to the
provisions of Section 17 (2) (b) of the Act under which they are
empowered to make payments towards defraying expenses of
members during their stay in an institution, and that Societies
should be encouraged to make fuller use of that power by meeting
 the cost of small additional comforts for their members in
such circumstances. (para. 496.)
(73) That provision should be made to empower Societies
to recover (without prejudice to any existing rights of recovery)
overpayments of benefit made to a member, by withholding each
week from sickness or disablement benefit due in respect of
subsequent periods of incapacity occurring within 12 months of
the date on which the overpayment was brought to the notice of
the member an amount not exceeding one-third of the weekly
sum then payable as benefit. (para. 502.)
(74) That Section 25 of the Act, which empowers the Minister
to provide for the re-insurance with him of the liabilities of all
Approved Societies in respect of maternity benefit. should be
repealed. (para. 511.)
ADDITIONAL BENEFITS.
(75) That in the case of new entrants into insurance no
change should be made in the present position as regards title
to additional benefits. (para. 585.)
(76) That in the case of persons transferring from one
Approved Society to another the title to participate in the
additional benefits—whether cash or treatment benefits—provided
 bv the new Society should mature at the end of two years