The History Of Medicare And How It Began
A national government health care program, Medicare provides health care benefits to seniors, younger people with specific disabilities, and patients with end stage renal disease. The history of Medicare began in 1945 when President Harry Truman strongly advocated some type of government health care delivery system. Back then there was no such thing as managed care, and doctors simply charged a fee for their service. Of interest, in 1940, America had something called a two-tiered system. Paying patients in hospitals stayed in private rooms, while non-paying patients spent their hospital stay in a ward shared with many other patients.
In 1945 Harry Truman was called a socialist. Today the same label has been pinned on President Obama. Perhaps the real question might be, how does a country provide all of its citizens and residents health care without some level of socialism?
In 1965, President Lyndon Johnson signed the Medicare and Medicaid law. The Medicare law provided benefits to the elderly, and first people to receive their Medicare cards were former President Harry Truman and his beloved wife, Bess. Medicare’s sister program, Medicaid, provided benefits to those who were indigent or had very low incomes.
Over the 45 years since its inception, Medicare has been revised several times. There were ancillary services added in 1972, such as speech therapy and physical therapy. Also in 1972 Medicare began to provide some payment benefits to patients’ health maintenance organizations.
Changes continued and in 1982 hospice care was temporarily added. This benefit became permanent in 1984. However, in 1989 benefits for catastrophic care and prescription drugs were repealed. The year 1997 saw a major change when Medicare Plus Choice, also known as Medicare Part C, was added. However, the provisions were so complicated that Congress was forced to review Medicare Plus Choice in 1999. The changes took effect in 2000.
The cost of Medicare has escalated since its beginnings. In 1965 the monthly premium for medical insurance, Part B, was a mere three dollars. Today that same premium is $96.40 a month. However, Part A, hospital costs now range from $254 to $461 per month. When it comes to Medicare, nothing is simple. There are co-pays, carve-outs and ceilings on major expenses like the amount allowed per day for hospital stays and skilled nursing facilities. The cost of health care continues to be a major source of concern for an aging population.
The complexities of Medicare, Medicare approved HMOs, State and Federal contributions and co-pays have created a system so complicated that the elderly often need help to understand their benefits. Furthermore, every year there are additional changes. It can be difficult to keep up with all those changes.
Today, President Truman’s vision has become President Obama’s reality. The Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act is law, but it will take years for it all to go into effect. There will be unintended consequences, some good, some bad. The Act is 906 pages long. Can anyone really understand all of the law’s provisions? In theory, Americans may not want more people to equal more government. In reality, more government for America’s ever growing population seems to be an unavoidable fact. Can America afford Obama’s affordable health care act? The history of Medicare will continue to develop. Its level of socialism has yet to be determined.
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