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Nearly 4.3 million births in the U.S. are reported, the largest number recorded since 1961.

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Government makes employee health benefits tax-exempt1943

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Government makes employee health benefits tax-exempt1943

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Congress makes employer-provided health benefits tax exempt for employees; very limited in scope and applicability.

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Employer-provided group life and health insurance plans cover more than 2/3 of the labor force.

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Congress first approves Health Savings Accounts 1978

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Congress first approves Health Savings Accounts 1978

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Medical Investment Retirement Accounts appear at banks, President Carter signs Congress’ Revenue Act establishing flexible benefit plans, giving employees

choice in health plans: allows employees to set aside pre-tax income to pay for medical expenses in Flexible Spending Accounts.

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Medicare/Medicaid change doctors’ role in health care delivery1966	

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Medicare/Medicaid change doctors’ role in health care delivery1966	

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Doctors earnings rise 11% under Medicare, while many refuse to participate in Medicaid. Doctors are unimpressed with AMA’s fumbling of legislation; membership drops. Medicare covers 19.1 million (9.7% of population), Medicaid covers 10 million(5%).

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The World Health Organization eradicates smallpox.

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American public wants more health protection, income security 1930-1939	

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American public wants more health protection, income security 1930-1939	

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The Depression leads to public interest in unemployment insurance and senior benefits.

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Medicine is seen as science, demand for medical care grows, hospitals become accepted as treatment centers, inadequate medical schools close, the number of trained physicians decreases, fees and overall costs rise.

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Health care spending rises, demand for workmen’s compensation rises 1919

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Health care spending rises, demand for workmen’s compensation rises 1919

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Illinois study reports that citizens lose four times more wages due to sickness than the amount they spend treating the illness; people purchase “sickness” insurance to replace their wages rather than health insurance to cover costs of medical treatment.

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National healthcare spending is $5,267 per person, $1,821 more than Switzerland, the next runner-up.

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World War I leads to groundbreaking treatments for control of contagious disease.

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American public rejects state health reform1994

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American public rejects state health reform1994

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A single-payer ballot initiative in California is defeated.

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Health Care spending eats into manufacturing profits2004

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Health Care spending eats into manufacturing profits2004

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GM cost for employee health benefits is about $5 billion/year, $1400 per vehicle manufactured (profit per vehicle is $178); Chrysler and Ford lose money on every car produced.

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Vision care benefits are introduced.

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The Centers for Disease Control officially defines an increasingly common collection of symptoms and syndromes as AIDS.

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Jonas Salk develops polio vaccine.

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First baby boomers reach 65 years of age.

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Congressional Budget Office estimates that Medicare could save $40 billion over next 10 years if subsidies to Medicare Advantage insurers for doctor and hospital reimbursements were limited to levels of the rest of the program (or save $54 billion in 5 years if eliminated altogether). About 1/5 of elderly Medicare enrollees are in private plans – 8.3 million across 604 contracts (see 2003).

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4th attempt at national health reform (see 1944): national insurance / Opposed by Doctors 1945

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4th attempt at national health reform (see 1944): national insurance / Opposed by Doctors 1945

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President Truman becomes first president to publicly support national health insurance through support of Murray-Wagner- Dingell bill for compulsory health insurance funded by payroll deductions.

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Enrollment in HMOs reaches 39 million (18% of those insured), up from 2 million in 1970.