in the same boat. afloat together, What about Mackenzie, Papineau? These new postage stamps will be issued on November 3. The blue seven-cent stamp showing a Canada goose in flight, designed by Emanuel Hahn, Toronto sculptor, follows the - pattern of the present air mail issue. showing Alexander Mackenzie, second prime minister, and the four-cent orange bearing the portrait of Sir John J. C. Abbott, fourth prime minister, are new issues in the prime minister series begun earlier this year with stamps picturing Sir Wilfred Laurier and Mackenzie King. Although Canadian stamps have shown many pclitical leaders, including Baldwin and Lafont- aine, the new series emphasizes the fact that no stamp has yet been issued to honor the two great leaders for responsible . government, William Lyon Mackenzie and Louis Papineau. The three-cent purple All in same boat WALLI BURNELL, Langley Prairie, B.C.: As the wife of one of the thousands of fisher- men forced on strike to main- tain a decent standard of liv- ing for fishermen’s ‘families, I was pleased to read the articles in the Pacific Tribune dealing so fully and accurately with our union fight for last year’s prices and the return of our British and Commonwealth export mar- ket. Unfortunately, the daily papers have not dealt so fairly with us. Small groups of fishermen’s wives organized into auxiliaries in Prince Rupert, Vancouver and along the Fraser are do- ing their bit to help distribute strike leaflets, to plan socials for striking workers, and to brew ‘“‘fishermen’s coffee’? for our picket patrols. The Congress of Canadian Women have pledged their sup- port in our struggle to keep our living standards from slipping back to depression day levels. We ask for the sympathy and support of all workers’: families ' in B.C. We are all pretty much Let’s keep What wage boost? PULP WORKER, Woodfibre, B.C.;: According to the daily papers I see us pulp and paper . mill workers have just received a 10-cent wage increase. I sure was glad to hear this and I hope the pulp and paper bosses learn of it, too, the same way. We were told this same “story by our wage delegates who ask- ed us to accept it, which a large majority did, perhaps not having really figured it out. .According to the papers and our wage delegates our basic rate was upped 10: cents an hour from $1.40 to $1.50. Well, a year ago Jast June we did get $1.40 an hour, but last June we were working a 42-hour week at. $1.45, five cents cost of living bonus, which with an average of three extra hours for Sundays, made an average weekly wage of $65.25. Now Wwe get a 40-hour week at $1.50. which with the three hours per week for Sundays comes to $64.50 a week. If that is a wage increase, then I’ll eat the shirt of the fourth international vice-president. This 75 cents a week reduc- tion does come back to ws in part as we do get another paid holiday, or $12 without work- ing. : “One word more of explana- tion. I’m a shift worker. The day workers got that kind of a deal last year. It seems that the fourth international ‘vice president never heard of the 40- “hour week at the same take home pay. JACK PHILLIPS National health insurance need shown by rising cost of MSA SREi bs Columbia’ s medical profession no longer will frown on the practice of extra-bill- ing by doctors over and above what they receive for services for prepaid medical plans such as the Medical Services Assocta- tion (MSA).” HIS is a report from the re- cent convention held by the Canadian Medical Association’s B.C. Division. And it gives considerable concern to those covered by prepaid who are medical plans. The main group concerned is MSA, which has the blessing of the medical pro- fession. As of July 1. 1952, the MSA eovered 77,226 employees through group centracts with employers. These employees and their dependents together add up to a total of 198,716 men, women and children. This is out of a total British Colum- bia population of 1,165,210. Thus, MSA coverage gives protection to approximately one person in six.- Private insur- ance companies (through group and individual coverage) com- pany plans, government insur- ance for their employees and credit union coverage, together embrace about as many people as MSA. With two of every three per- sons in British Columbia not covered by any form of prepaid insurance against doctors’ bills, this proves the inability of the A Canadian speaks J. ADAMS, Prince Rupert. B.C.: I met, an Indian brother, and he said:-‘“‘How are we go- ing to end up in Korea?” My answer was: “If we keep going the way we are, we can only end up in the destruction of all humanity.” Every paper and magazine we pick ap today talks about atom bombs and how to beat the Russians. I defy anyone to show me where Russia has made one aggressive move. But we who call ourselves democratic countries are committing crimes in the name of democracy. Why must we go on killing and be- ing killed? Why must we spend billions on ammunition when we need homes and roads? Why must we be stooges for the USA for- ever?. Why can’t we have a Canadian government that can. dictate for itself? The only place a have ever seen the USA winning wars is in the funny papers. I am just an “ignorant Indian’? but some day I may understand why the USA and Canada should try to dominate other countries. medical profession and the pri- vate insurance schemes to meas- ure up to the social problem of caring for the health of our people, The MSA, despite its formal designation as an independent society, is a creature of the medical profession. ‘This was the answer of the profession to the demand for state health in- surance, the ‘‘free enterprise’ answer. So, let’s have a look at this answer: Vy All coverage is .by plant, office or occupational group. and the employer’s agreement must be obtained in every case. The MSA reserves the right, and uses it frequently, to ex- clude any employee, or any dependents, from an accept- ed group. If the person is considered a poor risk, out he goes. There is no appeal. VV Rates for the group go up with the increase in doctors’ fees and with the increased use of the service by the sub- Scribers who form the group. Vv Chronic ailments are not covered. ‘Maximum coverage for any illness or injury is one year. V¥ When a man leaves his job, for any reason, he and his family lose their MSA cover- age. In other words, this is the sale of doctor’s care for profit, not health insurance. e Let’s take group X.. In 1948 this group was able to win from the employer concerned a con- tribution of $1.25 per month for single men and $2.50 per month for married men towards MSA, cents, and a married man $1.88 over and above the employer’s contribution. Today, with the same contri- bution by the employer, a single man pays $1.27 and the married man $5.06 a month. When the last increase was. put into effect this year, the group was told that its account was $4.536.94 in the red. In other words, the increase was for the purpose of making up this. deficit and providing a re- serve fund. ; Now, the group is warned that the practice of extra-bill- ing on in individual basis will be introduced shortly. This will affect more than the MSA. It will affect every group plan on’ the prepayment principle. What with group rates continually going up on the one side, and extra-billing on the other side, these group Plans are in danger of being smashed. Take the average married man under MSA, for example. His rate is high. but up to now it has been fixed annually. This has given him a sense of secur- ity. Once a year, he learned that it would cost him so much a month for the next 12 months. Now, this security is going up in smoke, Extra-billing will take place where a doctor feels that his services are worth more.. Dr. PL O. Lehman of Vancouver, presented the resolution to the. recent medical convention, He stated that competition would make it necessary for a doctor to justify his extra-billing. In other words, every doctor now has the right to charge as much as the traffic will bear, over and above what he gets from A single man paid 19_ the (MSA. ° : What is the answer to this problem? Immediately trade unions’ and other interested groups must protest to the MSA — and the B.C. Division of th® Canadian Medical Association. The demand must be ‘“‘no extfa- billing.” Where possible, thé employers who participate 2 prepaid plans should join 12 this protest. As the cost of this group iD surance, along with others continues to go up, take-home pay goes down, This means — employers must pay a jarge! share of insurance costs, De _ Cause the worker has no other means, under present circum stances, of meeting the ext? charge, ; But even if these points are won, as it can be, it will not solve the main problem. What Canada needs is‘an all embracing health insurance scheme, covering every Cala dian. : @ ‘ This year, the Trades and Labor Congress of Canada, the Canadian Congress of Labor 224 the Railway Brotherhoods met with the federal government | and requested a national health insurance scheme, ; + The TLC declared: ‘The early inauguration of a nation- wide health should be considered.’ + The CCL said; “The ab- sence of a health insurance Scheme is the biggest gap in our social security system.” - + The Railway Brotherhoods stated: ‘We would request that your government give consid eration to adopting a nation@ health insurance scheme whic will insure adequate and timelY medical treatment, hospitaliz@-_ tion and dental services.” The government’s reply Wa very strange.