For All the People: A Century of Citizen Action in Health Care Reform

After World War Two, Harry Truman was the first U.S. president to propose a comprehensive system of national health insurance. The American Medical Association launched the first professional public relations campaign in history to oppose the president’s plan, which was defeated by 1950. Following the failure of national health insurance, employers bargained with labor unions to establish health insurance coverage for employees. Private, employer-based health insurance came to define the U.S. health system. However, the limitations of this type of health insurance, which did not cover the poor or senior citizens, would lead to demands for Medicare and Medicaid in the 1960s.

This module was adapted from content created by Beatrix Hoffman, Professor of History at Northern Illinois University. The original content can be found on the National Library of Medicine website.