Differing Diagnoses

At first glimpse, the meeting in President Kennedy's office last week looked like a friendly consultation. Relaxing in his rocker, the President described how much the chair helped his chronic backache. The seven doctors around him listened intently, agreed that rockers were good therapy. But then Kennedy proceeded to outline his views on medical care for the aged--and things suddenly got uncongenial. The seven doctors were officials of the American Medical Association, which strongly opposes the President's medical-care program.

A.M.A. President Dr. Leonard W. Larson and his colleagues came at the President's invitation. Although the Administration bill providing hospital, nursing and minor doctor care for 14 million elderly Americans (with the cost covered by increases in the social security tax and the amount of wages on which the tax is figured) is still before the House Ways and Means Committee, President Kennedy is increasingly optimistic about its chances. The day he met the A.M.A., he had breakfasted with congressional leaders. They informed him that the members of Congress, while back home for the Easter recess, had said that medical care was an issue with real political sex appeal.

On that ground, Kennedy launched some propaganda at his principal adversaries.

"You're beaten," he told his guests. "The only question now is if it is to be financed out of social security or general revenue," adding that he favored the former.

But the doctors were far from ready to admit defeat. Dr. Edward Annis, chair man of the A.M. A. speakers' bureau, who tours the U.S. on behalf of A.M.A. causes, said he found even old people backing away from the Administration proposal.

Indeed, predicted Dr. Annis, support of the bill will soon become a political liability. During the 45-minute debate, interrupted once when a smiling Caroline Kennedy tapped on the office window as she was passing by, no agreements were reached. "We had an honest exchange of divergent views," reported Dr. Annis afterward.

If they welcomed the Kennedy invitation to a face-to-face discussion, the doctors were still mad over heavy-handed White House propaganda efforts. Close by the office where they sat last week, an Administration task force cranked out releases and scripts, helped a lobby called the National Council of Senior Citizens for Health Care. Fortnight from now, the President will fly to New York and address a medicare rally in Madison Square Garden; his speech will be televised to other rallies around the U.S. Dr. Larson protested this "bandwagon" technique, and the A.M.A. demanded equal TV time to reply -- which, perhaps to the A.M.A.'s surprise, was promptly granted by the network.

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