PUBLIC HEALTH

Dominion, Volume 13, Issue 290, 1 September 1920, Page 8

PUBLIC HEALTH

IMPORTANT NEW PROPOSALS

WIDER POWERS FOR LOCAL BODIES

A BOARD OP HEALTH

Tho Public H?.ilt"i Amendment Bil' which was inlrci'iOTd in the House o" Representatives yesterday, is largely a consolidating measure, but it contains some important neiv clauses. It creates a. Board ot Public Health, which is to exercise the vory wide powers at present possessed by the Chief Health Officer. It proposes also to give increased powers and responsibilities (o local bodied in public health matters. The Bill was read a second time pro forma, and referred to the Pufiic Health Committee, which will give persons interested an opportunity to be heard before the Bill re-

turns to the House, When the Bill was introduced. Mr. J. P. Luke (Wellington. North) asked for an assurance that: the new board'would not.conflict, with the duties of the local bodies or hospital boards.

The Hon. J. A. Hanan (rnvercargilt) deprecated the creation of new Departments and branches. He understood that the Bill did something of this kind. Tho Public Service Commissioner, said Mr. Hanan, had already pointed out that the multiplication of Departments meant heavy increase in expenditure. The new board was to bo free of Ministerial control. That meant that the board would be free of Parliamentary control, and of public control. His own opinion was that the local bodies sliouW be given a larger tiliaro of administrative responsibility.

Tho Minister of Public Health (Mr. J*hrr) said that the new Public Health Board would absorb tho existing medical Board of Health, and would take over tho authority possessed at present by the Chief Health Officer; This officer and the health officers had extraordinarily wide powers at present, and the Government tncught the powers which were necessary for the protection of public health 111 canes of emergency had better lw exercised by a board rather than by individuals. The Chief Health Officer was in (i position nt present to dictate to tlifl local bodies. The new board would contain representatives of tho Municipal Association and the Counties Association, and the .lay clement would be in the majority. Tno Bill increased considerably the powers possessed by local bodies in respect of public health. The local bodies were being encouraged to do things for themselves. Tho Bill, added tho Minister, authorised tl.e creation cf several divisions within the Public Health Department, but they were not Teally new divisions at all. They existed al'rady, and the Bill merely regularised their positions. The division of hospitals wait directed.by Dr. Wylie. the division of nursing by Miss Maclean, the division of hygiene by Dr. Watt, tlio division of llaori hygiene liy Dr. Buck, and tho division of school hygiene by Dr. Wilkle.. Theso divisions wern being given legislative sanction, but they were already at work, and their establishment wus not going to Involve chnnce# of staff.

Mr. W. D. L.vsnar (Gißhorne) Bald that tlio Giaborno Borough Council desired that the powers' of local bodies in public, health matters should be curtailed, and that the work!should bo taken over by the Public Health Department. The present arrangement produced of authority.

Mr. W. A: Veitch (Wanganuil asked what would bo the position of tho local ' bodies; in the event of a recurrence of the influenza epidemic. Would their powors bo greater or less than in 1018? Tho Minister admitted that there had been confusion of authority at the time of the epidemic. Tho fact was that in recent years the hospital boards had been expected to look after matters of sanitation and hygiene, . and tho work had not been well done. The hospital 1 beards generally, did not wish to be troubled with ma'tters outside the care of the sick. Tho Bill proposed to givo authority to tho local brdies instead of the hospital boards. The local bodies would be in direct contact with the Public Health' Department, which would be prepared to supply trained inspectors on a part-salary arrangement. The care of the health of the people would be one of the'principal duties of every local body. Improved provision was being made for dealing with insanitary and unwholesome buildings. The local authorities would bo able to exercise direct authority in these matters. ; provisionlTf the bill. SOME DRASTIC PROPOSALS. The Health Bill provides that the Chief Health Officer shall become Director-Uen-eral of Health. A Board of Health is to be created, consisting of the DirectorGeneral of Health, a representative ot the Internal Affairs Department, ft. meaical practitioner in the service o.* the Government, a medical practitioner nominated by the Sledic.il Association, a member of the Faculty of Medicine at Otago University, one representative cachof the Municipal Association and -the Counties' Association, a civil engineer, a chairman of a hospital board, and tiio other person, nominated by the Minister. The last five members are not to be medical practitioners. This board is to possess the powers formerly exercised by the: Chief Health Officer. The Bill lays.down the organisation of the Health Department and states its functions, including the organisation and control of medical, dental and nursing services. The second part of the Bill deals with tho powers and duties of local authorities. Each local body is required to promote and conserve the public health lyithin • its district, to arrange for inspection, to secure tho abatement of conditions likely to be'dangerous to health or offensive,' and to enforce health relations made under tho Act. A local authority may be exempted from these duties if it is unable to make adequate provision. A local authority must carry out any sanitary works ordered by the Board of Health, subject to a rigiht of appeal to a Stipendiary Magistrate. The Bill provides for the appointment of sanitary inspectors Tjy local authorities, and makes a comprehensive definition of tho term "nuisance" from the health point of view. Local authorities may serve owners or occupiers of dvellings with "cleansing orders," requiring any necessary cleansing to be done within a specified time. Local authorities mny also close insanitary premises, Hie owner to have right of appeal to a Magistrate. The provision for the demolition of insanitary or dangerous buildings is more drastic than the present law. A local authority may order the demolition of premises on the certificate of a health officer or of the surveyor or engineer ot a borough or county. The. order must bo issued if tho Board of Health so dirccls. If the owner fails to comply with tn« order, a Magistrate may make a demolition order, which will enable tho local authority to remove the .building and charge the owner with the cast. A health officer, if authorised by the Direc-tor-General, may apply fo the Aiagistrate for the order if the local authority lias.not moved after an owner has failed to comply with a requisition. Many clauses of the Bill relate to the prevention of nuisances, the protection o» districts from offensive trades, thu pollution of watercourses, and the sanitation of Maori settlements. District Health Officers, now to be known as Medical Officers of Health, are given wide powers in relation to infectious and notifiable disease. In the rase of an> epidemic, they may requisition land, buildings, vehicles, drugs r.nd other iP'i-ifVs. Thev may require persons to report themselves or submit themselves for medical examination, order illation, quarantine and disinfection, mnv control the movements of persons and ships, mny order the closing of hotels and plaoM of amusement. Medical practitioners may be required, when they discover cases of notifiable disease, to inform tho ot upicr of the premises and the person in attendance on the patient, as well r.s the local authority and tho Health Officer. •Tho law relating to quarantine of ship 3 is strengthened.

|„ Local authorities. may levy 11 separate I rate to cover expenditure under the Health Act. Where a local authority | fails to carry out works and cxereise pow- ] ers under the Act, tho Health Department may do tho work and charge tho cost to the local authority.