Truman and the fight for health care - Hawley, PA - The News Eagle
In fact, Medicare enacted only a part of what President Truman had advocated two decades earlier. In the 1940s, Truman was shocked and saddened by the poor state of the nation’s health care, which effectively excluded millions of middle-class Americans from access to the world’s most advanced medical technologies.
“That’s all wrong in my book,” Truman stated, “I’m trying to fix it so people in the middle-income bracket can live as long as the very rich and the very poor.”
Poor health was particularly a problem among young people. Nearly 8.5 million young men and women had been found physically or mentally unfit for military service during World War II – nearly half of those examined for their induction physicals. Truman saw this situation as “a crime.”
Noting that his predecessor, President Franklin D. Roosevelt, had advocated a national health initiative in his “Economic Bill of Rights,” Truman sent Congress a message on Nov. 19, 1945, proposing compulsory health insurance through payroll deductions and other revenue.
Truman supported complex legislation in a bill advanced by Democrats in the U.S. House and Senate. However, the president felt their effort had little chance for success in Congress. He proposed less complicated legislation that called for:
- Prepayment of medical expenses through compulsory insurance premiums and general revenues.
- Protection against lost wages due to illness or disability.
- Expansion of public health, prenatal care and child health services.
- Federal aid for medical schools and research institutions.
- Funding for local hospitals, clinics and medical institutions.
Truman proposed that the U.S. surgeon general set fees and administer the program. Doctors could choose whether or not to participate. He believed his plan would provide insurance for hospital and doctor costs for all working Americans and their families.Sphere: Related Content
No comments:
Post a Comment