In California, school districts are categorized as public health screening centers and are required to have school doctors or school nurse practitioners provide complete physical examination services. A survey was conducted in a school district with an enrollment of about 12,000 students to determine parental attitudes toward this service, and also to obtain their opinions on whether the clinical competence of the school nurse practitioners compared favorably to that of a private physician. Results revealed a high level of acceptance for the clinical services provided by the school and for the expertise of the nurse practitioners. In this paper, the results of this survey are discussed as well as problems with the present escalating costs of medical care in the United States. The possibility of using schools and nurse practitioners as community "School Clinics" is explored as one possible solution to the problem of health care costs. While the probability of socialized medicine in this country is discounted, it is suggested that some form of national health insurance might be feasible. The survey questionnaire is appended. (JD)