MAJORITY REPORT. 
Statement (Appendix XT.IT) it may be inferred that, while this 
long-established system works successfully, he feels there may 
be room for some closer relationship between the medical work 
of his Department and the other medical activities of the local 
bodies and of the Insurance practitioners. But while the 
problems of ill-health in factories have, no doubt, some relation 
to the general sanitary conditions of the area and to the work 
of the ordinary practitioners, we understand that there are 
strong arguments for retaining the existing close connexion 
between the medical and the technical inspection of factories. 
In reply to questions on this matter, Mr Brock expressed the 
view of the Ministry of Health as follows : ““ Tt was felt that 
the practical difficulty of transferring medical inspection of 
factories to the Ministry arose from the impossibility of 
divorcing it from the general work of factory inspection. In 
practice it would be very difficult to separate the medical side 
from questions of Workmen's Compensation and from the lay 
factory inspection as distinct from the medical inspection.” 
(Q. 24188). “‘I think the medical inspection of factories 
involves so many questions of a technical and not wholly 
medical character that it would be very difficult to separate it 
from the general provision for factory inspection.’ (Q. 24.184.) 
THE CONTRIBUTORY PENSIONS ScrpME, 
48. As to the relations of the Health Insurance Scheme to 
the arrangements under the Widows’, Orphans’ and Old Age 
Contributory Pensions Act recently passed little need be said. 
The provisions for the joint stamp and joint collection of con. 
tributions are matters of machinery. On the benefit side the 
two schemes stand quite apart. The age limit for contributions 
and cash benefits under the Health Insurance Scheme is to be 
lowered from 70 to 65 as from January, 1998, and the weekly 
contribution payable is accordingly reduced by 1d. in the case of 
men and 4d. in the case of women. Medical benefit, as before, 
does not cease when the insured person's rights to cash benefits 
under the Act are terminated at 65, but continues throughout the 
remainder of life. 
WoRkrMEN’Y COMPENSATION. 
49. The payment of benefit to persons in receipt of com- 
pensation under the Workmen's Compensation Acts is dealt with 
in Section 16 of the National Health Insurance Act of 1924. 
If the weekly value or weekly rate of the compensation received 
is equal to or exceeds the weekly rate of Health Insurance 
benefit to which the insured person would otherwise be entitled, 
no benefit is payable. If if is less only the difference ig payable. 
Lump sum compensations are to be translated into weekly