ARTICLE 3. MEMBERSHIP Membership in this organization shall be open to all who are engaged in the arts, sciences, or professions. Associate membership in this organization shall be open to the general public. but such associate membership shall not carry any voting rights. ARTICLE 4. MEETINGS The annual membership meeting of this organization shall be held on the 11th day of February each and every year except if such day be a legal holiday then and in that event the board of directors shall fix the day but it shall not be more than 2 weeks from the date fixed by these bylaws. The secretary shall cause to be mailed to every member in good standing at his address as it appears in the membership roll book of this organization a notice telling the time and place of such annual meeting. The presence of not less than 50 members shall constitute a quorum an! shall be necessary to conduct the business of this organization; but a lesser number may adjourn the meeting for a period of not more than 2 weeks from the date scheduled by these bylaws and the secretary shall cause a notice of this scheduled meeting to be sent to all those members who were not present at the meeting originally called. Any number present shall constitute a quorur at the second meeting and all business transacted be binding upon the organization. Special meetings of this organization may be called by the chairman wher he deems it for the best interest of the organization. Notices of such meeting shall be mailed to all members at their addresses as they appear in the menbership roll book at least 10 but not more than 20 days before the schedule: date set for such special meeting. Such notice shall state the reasons that such meeting has been called, the business to be transacted at such meeting and by whom called. At the request of one-third of the members of the board of directors or onethird of the voting members of the organization the chairman shall cause a special meeting to be called but such request must be made in writing at least 30 days before the requested scheduled date. No other business but that specified in the notice may be transacted at snc special meeting without the unanimous consent of all present at such meeting. ARTICLE 5. VOTING At all meetings, except for the election of officers and directors, all votes shall be viva voce, except that for election of officers ballots shall be provide! and there shall not appear any place on such ballot any mark or marking tha: might tend to indicate the person who cast such ballot. At any regular or special meeting if a majority so requires any question ma be voted upon in the manner and style provided for election of officers an directors. At all votes by ballot the chairman of such meeting shall immediately prior to the commencement of balloting appoint a committee of two who shall ac as inspectors of election and who shall at the conclusion of such balloti: certify in writing to the chairman the results and the certified copy shall b physically affixed in the minute book to the minutes of that meeting. ARTICLE 6. ORDER OF BUSINESS 1. Roll call. 2. Reading of the minutes of the preceding meeting. 3. Reports of committees. 4. Reports of officers. 5. Old and unfinished business. 6. New business. 7. Good and welfare. 8. Adjournments. ARTICLE 7. BOARD OF DIRECTORS The The business of this organization shall be managed by a board of direc tors consisting of 55 members together with the officers of this organization. A: least one of the directors elected shall be a resident of the Sate of New York and all of the directors shall be citizens of the United States. Thirty-two directors shall be chosen for the ensuing year at the annual meeting of this organization in the same manner and style as the chairman of this organization and they shall serve for a term of 1 year. The remaining 23 directors shall be nominated by the 32 directors chosen at the annual meeting and elected by mail referendum of the membership and shall serve until the next annual meeting of this organization. The board of directors shall have the control and management of the affairs and business of this organization. Such board of directors shall only act in the name of the organization when it shall be regularly convened by its chairman after due notice to all the directors of such meeting. Ten of the members of the board of directors shall constitute a quorum and the meetings of the board of directors shall be held regularly on the sixth day of February and quarter annually thereafter. Each director shall have one vote and such voting may not be done by proxy. The board of directors may make such rules and regulations covering its meetings as it may in its discretion determine necessary. Vacancies in the said board of directors shall be filled by a vote of the majority of the remaining members of the board of directors for the balance of the year. The chairman of the organization by virtue of his office shall be chairman of the board of directors. The board of directors shall select from one of their number a secretary. A director may be removed when sufficient cause exists for such removal. The board of directors may entertain charges against any director. A director may be represented by counsel upon any removal hearing. The board of directors shall adopt such rules as it may in its discretion consider necessary for the best interests of the organization for this hearing. The board of directors may select from among its members an executive committee which shall function between the quarter annual meetings of the board of directors and shall carry out the policies and directives of the board of directors. The board of directors shall be composed of at least two representatives of each of the permanent committees of the organization. These permanent committees shall represent each of the fields covered by the arts, sciences, and professions. The permanent committees will have a chairman and five or six cochairmen elected by the membership of each permanent committee. The board of directors will appoint at its first meeting an executive council which will be responsible for carrying out the program set forth by the board. This executive council will have representation from each of the subdivisions in the committee. The membership of each subdivision shall recommend to the board of directors one representative and one alternate to serve on the executive council. ARTICLE 8. OFFICERS The officers of the organization shall be as follows: Chairman; 10 vice chairmen, secretary, and treasurer. The chairman shall preside at all membership meetings. He shall by virtue of his office be chairman of the board of directors. He shall present at each annual meeting of the organization an annual report of the work of the organization. He shall appoint all committees, temporary or permanent. He shall see all books, reports, and certificates as required by law are properly kept or filed. He shall be one of the officers who may sign the checks or drafts of the organization. He shall have such powers as may be reasonably construed as belonging to the chief executive of any organization. If at any membership meeting less than 10 vice chairmen have been elected, the chairman shall be empowered to appoint additional vice chairmen, so that the total shall not exceed 10, and said appointees shall serve as vice chairmen until the next annual election. The vice chairman shall in the event of the absence or inability of the chairman to exercise his office become acting president of the organization with all the rights, privileges, and powers as if he had been the duly elected chairman. The secretary shall keep the minutes and records of the organization in appropriate books. It shall be his duty to file any certificate required by any statute, Federal or State. He shall give and serve all notices to members of this organization. He shall be the official custodian of the records and seal of this organization. He may be one of the officers required to sign the checks and drafts of the organization. He shall present to the membership at any meetings any communication addressed to him as secretary of the organization. He shall submit to the board of directors any communications which shal be addressed to him as secretary of the organization. He shall attend to all correspondence of the organization and shall exercise all duties incident to the office of Secretary. The treasurer shall have the care and custody of all monies belonging to the organization and shall be solely responsible for such moneys or securities of the organization. He shall render at stated periods as the board of directors shall determine written account of the finances of the organization and such report shall be physically affixed to the minutes of the board of directors of such meeting. He shall exercise all duties incident to the office of treasurer. Officers shall by virtue of their office be members of the board of directors. No officer shall for reason of his office be entitled to receive any salary or compensation, but nothing herein shall be construed to prevent an officer or director from receiving any compensation from the organization for duties other than as a director or officer. ARTICLE 9. SALARIES The board of directors shall hire and fix the compensation of any and all enployees which they in their discretion may determine to be necessary in the conduct of the business of the organization. ARTICLE 10. COMMITTEES All committees of this organization shall be appointed by the chairman a their term of office shall be for a period of 1 year or less if sooner terminate. by the action of the chairman. The permanent committees shall be as indicated: Theater; radio; literatur films; art; science and technology; music; educators; medicine; dentistry journalism; advertising, book; and publishing. ARTICLE 11. DUES The dues of this organization shall be $3 per annum for general members a: associate members, $10 per annum for contributing members, and $50 per annu for sustaining members. The dues of founding members shall be $100 per annum. ARTICLE 12. AMENDMENTS These bylaws may be altered, amended, repealed, or added to by an affirmat vote of not less than two-thirds of the members. ARTICLE 13 The board of directors may associate, affiliate, or make any other work arrangement with other working organizations having similar purposes, on a terms or conditions that board of directors in its discretion may deem advisab [SEAL.] Senator DONNELL. Doctor, I understand you voiced your opini with respect to what you consider a lack of progressive approach these problems by the American Medical Association. Dr. BUTLER. Yes. I am a member of that Association. Senator DONNELL. Yes. I may repeat again, this is no flatter I think every man is impressed with the thought and care you ha given these problems. Dr. BUTLER. Thank you. THE AMA BUREAUCRACY Senator DONNELL. Doctor, you refer in your statement to the bureaucracy that dominates the opinion expressed by the so-called organized medicine. Do you mean by that bureaucracy an inner circle within organized medicine, or do you mean the association, as such? Dr. BUTLER. I mean the inner circle. Senator DONNELL. The inner circle. Dr. BUTLER. In any organization as big as the thing like the American Medical Association and with the huge income of the American Medical Association, there unfortunately develops a group whose livelihood depends upon continuing to receive the full time relatively large salaries that are paid by the organization for maintaining the administrative end of their show. Senator DONNELL. And that group is the group to which you refer as the "bureaucracy"? Dr. BUTLER. That is right. The CHAIRMAN. Let me ask a question there. What is the official position of Dr. Fishbein? Dr. BUTLER. I do not know whether I should mention this, because I am not well informed, but I have inquired, and I have been told that Dr. Fishbein's official position in the American Medical Association is editor of the Journal of the American Medical Association and I think one or two other journals that are published by that association. The CHAIRMAN. He is not actively engaged in practicing medicine? Dr. BUTLER. He is not actively engaged in practicing medicine, and, Senator, I would like to take this opportunity to state that unfortunately Dr. Fishbein, including a great many of the people who speak concerning medical matters for the American Medical Association, have rarely if ever practiced medicine, and certainly for years have not been engaged in the practice of medicine. Senator DONNELL. Doctor, may I ask you, you are in the Harvard medical faculty? Dr. BUTLER. I am. Senator DONNELL. And you have practiced medicine to some extent? Dr. BUTLER. Every day and almost every night. Senator DONNELL. You are engaged in private practice as well as being on the medical faculty of the Harvard University? Dr. BUTLER. I see private patients as well as see the public patients I am on a salary caring for. Senator DONNELL. Doctor, do you know approximately the membership of the American Medical Association, in number? Dr. BUTLER. Yes. Senator DONNELL. What is it? Dr. BUTLER. The American Medical Association never lets you forget. It is about 130,000. Senator DONNELL. About 130,000? Dr. BUTLER. Yes. Senator DONNELL. Are you able to say, Doctor, approximately what proportion of the active practitioners of the United States are members of the American Medical Association? Dr. BUTLER. Yes, roughly. I should say, roughly-I think Dr. Lawrence is here. He would know better than I would, but roughly, 90 percent. Senator DONNELL. Roughly 90 percent of the active practitioners in the United States are members of the American Medical Association! Dr. BUTLER. Can I tell you what that means? Senator DONNELL. Yes. Dr. BUTLER. I will give you my own experience. I came to Boston to practice medicine. When I was first there, for 4 years I did not join the State medical society. Not being a member of the State medical society, I cannot be a member of the American Medical Association. When I was practicing medicine without being a member of the State medical society, I was invited to give a lecture at the annual meeting of the American Medical Association. Before the annual meeting occurred, I was notified that they had just observed I was not a member of the American Medical Association, therefore, I could not read a paper before it; to which, of course, I replied, "That is all right by me. You asked me to read the paper, and it is really a little inconvenient, so we will call it off." Then I discovered that I was paying more for my liability professional insurance because I was not a member of the State medica! society than I would pay if I were. So I joined. This was about the time of the depression. I joined the State medical society. Immed ately, I am a member of the American Medical Association. Senator DONNELL. That is as an affiliation of the two? Dr. BUTLER. You just become a member of the A. M. A. when you join the State medical society; and to get the lowest rate of liability insurance, you have got to be a member of the State medical society. Senator DONNELL. Going back to the percentage, I understand you say that the percentage is about 90 percent of the members of the American Medical Association. Dr. BUTLER. Right. Senator DONNELL. There were, some few years ago, steps taken toward the reorganization of governmental affairs of the American Medical Association, which resulted in the creation of the house of delegates of that association. That is correct, is it not? Dr. BUTLER. That was many, many years ago. Dr. BUTLER. Yes. Senator DONNELL. And the house of delegates consists of representatives from all parts of the United States; does it not? Dr. BUTLER. Yes. Senator DONNELL. Do you know approximately the size of the house of delegates? Dr. BUTLER. No; but it is a good organization in terms of the people who come from local communities to attend the national meeting. Senator DONNELL. Yes, sir. Dr. BUTLER. But look over the roster and you will find the same delegates have been coming from the same State medical society for years and years and years. |