The 50th anniversary of Medicare and Medicaid should be an occasion for celebrating public programs that have made a positive difference in the lives of millions of Americans and a reminder of the critical need to preserve their legacies.
It’s easy to forget that our country once allowed half of its seniors and the vast majority of low-income workers and their families to go without life-saving health coverage — leading to unnecessary pain, suffering and early death.
By adopting Medicare and Medicaid, U.S. leaders declared to the world that there was a standard of living they were prepared to guarantee in order to secure better, more humane outcomes for its citizens. It was collective action at its best.
-The New York Times