On Sept. 1, I posted a blog titled "We’re No. 37!!" about the fact that the World Health Organization ranks 36 nations’ health-care systems as better than ours. The blog mentioned that the U.S. system became unique during World War II because wage and price controls induced employers to offer prospective employees health insurance in lieu of wages.
The blog also mentioned that President Harry Truman opposed the system and proposed that the national government pay the medical expenses of everyone who joined a national health insurance fund, but lobbying by the American Medical Association killed the plan.
This blog includes three links from the Harry S. Truman Library & Museum that details our 33rd president’s thoughts on health care. (I can recite all 44 presidents in chronological order because I have no life).
The first link summarizes Truman’s plan to fix the American health-care system.
"Truman argued that the federal government should play a role in health care, saying "The health of American children, like their education, should be recognized as a definite public responsibility,’ according to the Truman Library & Museum.
The museum reports that "the most controversial aspect" of Truman’s plan was the proposed national health insurance plan. "In his November 19, 1945 address, President Truman called for the creation of a national health insurance fund to be run by the federal government," reports the museum. "This fund would be open to all Americans, but would remain optional. Participants would pay monthly fees into the plan, which would cover the cost of any and all medical expenses that arose in a time of need."
The second link is his Nov. 19, 1945, speech to Congress that recommends a "comprehensive health program."
During the speech, Truman mentions that he proposed an Economic Bill of Rights on Sept. 6, 1945, and "our new Economic Bill of Rights should mean health security for all, regardless of residence, station, or race--everywhere in the United States."
Truman then says that "there are five basic problems which we must attack vigorously if we would reach the health objectives of our Economic Bill of Rights." He outlines the problems and his solutions to those problems. His remarks on the five problems include:
1. "The distribution of physicians in the United States has been grossly uneven and unsatisfactory."
2. Many rural and urban areas lack public health services, including maternal and child care.
3. The USA needs to invest more money in the research of how to prevent and cure cancer and other diseases.
4. The cost of medical care is too high not just for the needy, but also for "normally self-supporting persons." Truman emphasized that many people postpone or do not seek medical care because of the cost.
5. "A comprehensive health program must include the payment of benefits to replace at least part of the earnings that are lost during the period of sickness and long-term disability."
The third link includes his 1948 remarks at the National Health Assembly Dinner.
During the speech, Truman said he was preparing to outline a 10-year program for the health and welfare of Americans and explained why a national health-care program was needed.
"In this World War Number Two, one of the most disgraceful things that came to light was the fact that nearly 33 1/3 percent of all the young men who came up for physical examination for the purpose of serving their country--33 1/3 percent of them were not fit for service, due to either some mental defect or some physical defect, he said.
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