The Simple Problem of Financing Universal Health Care

摘要

Many years ago when I worked for the agency that later became the Health Care Financing Administration, we found that universal health care was within our sight. The problem was to find an acceptable way to include all Americans in the plan without giving any extraordinary power to individual health care providers. The original plans for universal care became cannon fodder for the various economic powers within the health care provider communities. Each wished to reward themselves with extreme economic power to exact monopolistic returns for their services. All the providers and including the third party payers provided legislation for congress to act on to guarantee Americans health care. No matter how the system would work and be funded the goal was to provide health care services to all American citizens.