By Julian E. Zelizer
Editor's note: Julian E. Zelizer is a professor of history and public affairs at Princeton University's Woodrow Wilson School. His new book, "Arsenal of Democracy: The Politics of National Security -- From World War II to the War on Terrorism," will be published this fall by Basic Books.
Rightardia has talked to The Major about the Tricare Prime program he uses as a military retiree. The program is managed by the government under contract with Humana. The Major developed a serious service connected condition and Tricare Prime covered all of the costs including expensive medications. He couldn't be more pleased.
The Major has a different view of the Veteran's Administration (VA) and he will write an article at a later date explaining how to expedite a claim through the VA after his eight year ordeal with the VA is resolved. This should occur shortly.
PRINCETON, New Jersey (CNN) -- Health care reform has gotten off track. The president's news conference fell flat. Polls show growing unease with the proposals currently in play. And Congress will not meet the deadline that President Obama imposed.
The status quo, as the president correctly explained to reporters, is not sustainable. Our health care system is not working. Millions of people lack insurance, costs are out of control, businesses and workers are struggling to keep up with premiums.
After years of being in the opposition, Democrats are still scared about defending the value of government. Their political nerves have been exacerbated by polls showing the public is growing increasingly concerned about the size of government spending.
Before the 1970s, Democrats were full of confidence when pushing for federal programs. Indeed, 44 years ago this week, on July 30, 1965, President Lyndon Johnson signed the legislation that created Medicare and Medicaid.
The event took place at Harry Truman's presidential library in Independence, Missouri.
Sitting beside the 81-year-old former president, Johnson announced: "No longer will older Americans be denied the healing miracle of modern medicine. No longer will illness crush and destroy the savings that they have so carefully put away over a lifetime so that they might enjoy dignity in their later years."
The program succeeded. Government worked. Before
Medicare started,
only about 50 percent of Americans who were 65 or older possessed hospital coverage.
Within five years of the program's creation, 97 percent of the elderly had hospital coverage. The same changes occurred with physician's coverage. Today, more than 40 million elderly Americans rely on the program -- as do their families who don't have to take responsibility for these costs.
Besides expanding coverage, Medicare has become instrumental to the health care industry. For all the complaints that we hear about Medicare, the reality is that most hospitals and doctors have come to depend on these federal payments into their system. Those who want to keep government "out" of the industry rarely acknowledge that government is already "in."
. . . Medicare has proven to be more popular than private insurance programs. So, for all the talk about hating big government, the big government seems to be doing something right, according to numerous polls.
According to a Kaiser poll, 68 percent of respondents said they believed the Medicare program would put "your interests above their own" compared to 48 percent for private insurance.
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