Medicine: The Capital of III Health

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One of the worst pestholes in the nation is its proud white capital. Health authorities know it, and last week Congress was told so, officially. The worst health menace is overcrowding—since last spring Washington's population increased from 663,000 to 735,000.

In a report to the House of Representatives on living conditions in the District of Columbia, Mrs. Helen Duey Hoffman of the Washington Housing Association said: "One bath for 15 or 20 persons is a common grievance. Three to six unrelated roomers in the parlor of a once fine private residence is not uncommon. Renting a vacant bed was once shocking but is now all too frequent. " Washington rents are the highest in the U. S. And there is no relief in sight, for another 100,000 migrants are expected in 1941, and new housing lags far behind demand.

Tuberculosis. One of the barometers of a city's bad health is its tuberculosis rate.Of every 100,000 Washingtonians, 89 died of tuberculosis last year (national rate: 47 per 100,000). Washington's 177,000-Negroes live mostly in condemned alley buildings. Six Negroes die of t.b. every year to one white person.

Venereal Disease. In the last few weeks Washington streetwalkers have lowered their prices from $3 to $2 to accommodate $21-a-month soldiers. In 1940, Washington had over 10,000 reported cases of venereal diseases, had a higher rate of syphilis than any of the ten larger U. S. cities.Washington's health officer, Dr. George Clemens Ruhland, says himself that many people are turned away from venereal-disease clinics because there are no facilities to take care of them.

Besides overcrowding, the chief reason for these gruesome facts is that Health Officer Ruhland has to depend on Congress' meagre doles: 97¢ per resident for public health, instead of at least $2.50. There are only two municipal hospitals, only 150 city nurses (needed: 330).