Part: 12         Session: 123456789101112131415161718192021222324252627282930313233343536         Page 126127128129130131132133134135136137138139140141142143144145146147148149150151 of 1143

to the idea, and he's said in one of his interviews with Ed Murrow, which Murrow made since his retirement, that one of the few things he didn't get done that he wanted to get done during his Presidency was health insurance.

The second health message was largely a restatement of the first one, as I recall it, but it reemphasized the fact that the President was interested in the field, and it did give the idea of the need for health legislation some currency. The re-writing of the message was done by someone other than Rosenman. By this time, Rosenman had retired and gone back to New York. It covered the same subjects however: the need for more medical education, aid to research, and national health insurance.

Mrs. Lasker, in the period which came between the two messages, did you notice any increase in impetus among members of Congress in this general field?

Honestly I didn't. Everytime we had to fight for their interest on a personal basis, each time. I honestly couldn't say that it had helped in any measurable way. It had helped us because it gave us confidence that the President had done this, but I couldn't say that we could detect any real influence when we talked to people.

On a visit in '47, on the second health message, Florence and I asked the President if he would give an Award of Merit to Sir Howard Florey and Sir Alexander Fleming for the discovery of penicillin. The President said he would consider sending the