A health manpower report prepared by the National Commission of Community Health Services showed that the U.S. hospitals and health organizations were maintaining the ratio of 150 doctors per 100,000 population only by filling out one-fifth of their needs with physicians from other countries. The demand for health care had also created serious shortages of nurses and other paramedical personnel. Among the solutions being suggested were new methods of health care organization and government support for new or expanded education programs in the health sciences.
Some states were attempting to organize the administration of their public health facilities by merging departments. New Mexico and Nevada followed the example of California, Maine, Missouri, and New Hampshire and combined their health and welfare departments. The commission studying the public health needs of New York City recommended a single health services administration for the city and the creation of a nonprofit corporation to operate city hospitals and health centers.
At this writing, a number of groups of scientists, physicians, and civic leaders have undertaken a study of the public policy implications of biomedical research. One of the most ambitious proposals came in February 1968 from Sen. Walter F. Mondale (Dem., Minn.). Mondale introduced in the U.S. Senate a resolution calling for the creation of a Commission on Health Science and Society.
A health manpower report prepared by the National Commission of Community Health Services showed that the U.S. hospitals and health organizations were maintaining the ratio of 150 doctors per 100,000 population only by filling out one-fifth of their needs with physicians from other countries. The demand for health care had also created serious shortages of nurses and other paramedical personnel. Among the solutions being suggested were new methods of health care organization and government support for new or expanded education programs in the health sciences.