Blog 2: History of the Healthcare Reform

The United States of America have one of the most prestige healthcare facilities, technologies, and staff. Even though United States is one of the best nations in healthcare breakthrough, but our country is not the greatest in healthcare policies. Since the birth of the United States in 1776, it took one hundred and thirty-six years to establish a general healthcare policy. Since then, healthcare reform is one of the most controversial topics on many presidential agenda. In this blog, there will be a historical timeline of the healthcare reform and highlights of some of the most popular presidential decision regarding healthcare.

The first attempt to introduce a general healthcare policy was in 1912, under the Progressive leader, Theodore Roosevelt. Roosevelt’s Universal Healthcare Bill guaranteed medical coverage to all Americans. Roosevelt also used this healthcare proposal to earn him a ticket into the oval office as the 32^nd President. However, during this time, World War I was emerging, and majority of the American were bracing for war. In addition, the Red Scare of 1919 made people more hesitant to adopt a new socialized healthcare insurance policy. Therefore, Theodore Roosevelt bid for presidency was over, and his healthcare policy was also defeated by President Woodrow Wilson. The first attempt in passing a universal healthcare policy failed due to the outbreak of war and the scare of communism.

The second attempt to introduce a healthcare policy was in 1927 by President Calvin Coolidge. President Coolidge’s healthcare policies started with a country wide investigation into the American healthcare system which concluded: private insurance can offer healthcare insurance to their patients, and have higher taxes to support healthcare. Coolidge’s investigation provided a great recommendation, in which to insure all Americans into a healthcare plan, but the overall situation of this policy was to support his re-election into his presidency against Herbert Hoover. Coolidge was not re-elected as president, however, his recommendation of private insurance prevailed. Many Americans were able to purchase health care insurance through private health insurance company.  In 1929, the stock market crashed and the number of American who afforded health insurance did not continue to fund their policies.  By the end of 1929, the stock market crashed and the start of the Great Depression cause the failure of the second attempt in establishing an universal healthcare policy.

The third attempt of a healthcare policy was designed and campaigned by President Franklin D Roosevelt (FDR). In 1935, FDR’s Social Security Act was passed, and the act provided safety for the sick, senior citizen and disabled. In addition to the Social Security Act, FDR also passed the National Health Insurance program. The program helped American to afford low cost health insurance and helped the economic recovery after the Great Depression. FDR’s healthcare policies were the turning point in our healthcare system, the beginning of healthcare debates throughout the years to come. 

Since President Franklin Roosevelt’s healthcare policies, many presidents have developed additional policies or have added clauses and exclusion onto preceding healthcare policies. President Truman endorsed the Murray-Wagner-Dingell bill in 1945, which would include unlimited access to of healthcare for those who are hospitalized. This bill never made it pass congress, however Truman’s backup plan to provide patients sixty days (Sixty Day Plan) of free hospital care to social security recipient was enacted. Truman’s backup plan was an addition to FDR original Social Security Act. Twenty years later, 1965, President Lyndon Johnson extended on Truman’s Sixty Day Plan and created Medicare and Medicaid. Medicare and Medicaid are in place to provide coverage for the elderly, provide states with federal grants to cover medical cost and providing nursing home services for the poor. In addition, Johnson required both Medicare and Medicaid to create an alliance between medical institutions and private insurance companies in order to provide adequate medical service. Since the creation of Medicare and Medicaid by Johnson, United States finally have a stable Healthcare policy, and was in a state of stabilization for quite some years.

For almost a decade since the creation of Medicare and Medicaid by Johnson, American was had stabilization in the healthcare system. In 1976, under President Jimmy Carter, his administration developed a new Health Security Plan. The Health Security Plan of 1976 constituted employers to offer health insurance and expanded the coverage of Medicare and Medicaid. However, under Carter’s Health Security Plan, many businesses close down and bankrupt, since due to the high cost of covering health insurance for their employees. Hence, a recession in the United States occurred until Ronald Reagan took office in 1980. Under Ronald Reagan’s Consolidated Omnibus Reconciliation Act of 1985 (CORBA), United States was able to crawl out of a short recession. The act provided former employees of a workplace to continue their healthcare insurance coverage after leaving the job. In addition, CORBA provided employer tax credit to support the employers’ funding of their employees healthcare insurance. Reagan’s policies were similar to Carter’s, but economically well balanced. Since the Reagan Administration, healthcare between 1990’s to present day is a highly controversial topic dealing with both economy and type of people being coverage.

In the early 1990’s, under the Clinton Administration, many Americans have lost both their job and healthcare insurance. During this time period, healthcare policies remained the same since the Reagan Administration: but the uprising of unemployment and uninsured American patients gradually increased. President Clinton acted quickly to decrease unemployment rate and uninsured American patients by enacting the Health Security Plan of 1993. The Plan would provide every American with a "Health Security Card" to ensure access to care, and approving Medicaid waivers allowing states to expand to uninsured groups. However, this plan never won the approval of congress and was immediate thrown out. In 1996 when President Clinton and Congress approved the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA) which restricts use of pre-existing conditions in health insurance coverage determinations. In addition HIPAA sets standards for medical records privacy, and establishes tax-favored treatment of long-term care insurance. The passing of HIPAA, gave American the opportunity to gain medical insurance through multiple sources, such as private hospital insurance companies (Kaiser, Sutter), and third party insurance companies (BlueShield, Anthem). After President George W Bush took office, the Bush Administration did not enact any new healthcare policies that would change the current policies that were set forth by the Clinton Administration and by all of the previous administration. Prosperity in the healthcare world remained at the same level since 1996 throughout the entire Bush Administration.

In present day, under the Obama Administration, President Obama has ultimately changed the healthcare policies from all preceding policies. In early 2010, President Obama signed the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act into law. The act was a highly controversial and had congress fighting among themselves and within each individual parties. The act contain policies that would never been passed years before, dating back to Theodore Roosevelt and Calvin Coolidge. Under Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act all Americans and individuals without citizenship in the United States would: be guaranteed universal insurance coverage, Medicaid will expand to the poorest income class, all low and middle incomes will have access to affordable cover via employment, extending young adult coverage within parental insurance policies and no healthcare insurance company can denied insuring anyone with any pre-existing condition or lack of money. At first glance, this act is a winning act that many American will desire to have. However, the battle within the legislative branch was brutal and harsh. Congress argued about the funding of insuring all American, and how can the United States have the resources sustaining  the projected population that would be flooding into the healthcare system. In conclusion, the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act was enact into law with a vote of 219-212. The act also requires the commitment of all insurance companies, and hospital companies to cooperate, as the act requires a four years, and approximately cost $940 billion dollars to successfully implement. Up until today, many Americans and lawmakers questions about the act and how funding can be allocated in a time of economic woes.

Healthcare may have started as early as the birth of the United States, but the actual Healthcare reform first started in the 1900’s. Throughout many years, our government have debated, and fought over many type of policies and reform regarding healthcare in the integrity of American health. Majority of the time when policies, plans and acts are turn down are due to funding and popularity. However, in modern society, healthcare reform will always remain a nasty debate and a debate that will have parties divided. No matter how our legislation enact laws, the healthcare reform will always be rewritten and changed, affect every individual that resides in the United States of America.

References

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Fuchs, V. (1996). Economics, values, and health care reform .86(1), 1-24.

Kronick, R., Goodman, D., & Wennberg, J. (1993). The marketplace in health care reform -- the      demographic limitations of managed competition.1993(328), 148-152.

Health care crisis. (2011). Retrieved from http://www.pbs.org/healthcarecrisis/history.htm

Cohen, T. (2010, March 23). Timeline: When health care reform will affect you. Retrieved from             http://articles.cnn.com/2010-03-23/politics/health.care.timeline_1_prescription-drug-plan-health-      care-doughnut-hole?_s=PM:POLITICS

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Townsend, R. (2002, February 23). Has a national health program been put before congress?. Retrieved    from http://www.historians.org/projects/GIRoundtable/Health/Health4.htm