Introduction

Concerns over our healthcare delivery system have plagued us as a society for over 70 years. The FDR administration looked at “universal health insurance” during the Great Depression. The Truman and Johnson Administrations visited the topic, only to get rebuffed by “political paralysis,” referring to the same Congressional stalemate we have seen the past 25 years.

Former President Bill Clinton won election in 1992 with the pledge to solve our national economic crisis by “solving the healthcare problem.”[1] Hilary Clinton brought national attention to the issue as First Lady, valiantly attempting to offer solutions but getting defeated by special interests.

In 2008, Barack Obama gained election in part with a promise to reform our healthcare system. This resulted in the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act of 2010 (ACA), nicknamed Obamacare. While addressing the need to include the uninsured in order to spread the risk, the ACA failed to address the core drivers of cost. ACA faced strong opposition from Republicans and conservatives on both side of the aisle and has been the source of division along political lines for the past seventeen years.

The sad fact, however, is that the Republican replacement plans also fail to address the core drivers of cost. They also simply take us back to pre-ACA healthcare that has already proven unsuccessful. This paper will address these reform efforts later. But what is more important is a discussion of the overwhelming reasons we have not done what is necessary. After over 70 years, we should at least acknowledge the need to start somewhere before it is too late. It is my hope in republishing this paper that we can frame a better discussion that can lead to real long-term solutions.