In 1954, President Eisenhower stated that "The Federal Government can do many helpful things and still carefully avoid the socialization of medicine." He understood, that if something wasn't done soon, America would begin clamoring for socialized medicine. 60 years of presidents had tried to reform our health care system, In 1994, Bill Clinton promised he would get it done, and it almost destroyed his presidency.
Bill Clinton campaigned heavily on health care in the 1992 election. His objective was to come up with a plan to provide comprehensive universal health care for all Americans. At the heart of the plan was a mandate that would force employees to provide health care to all of their employees. This met much resistance, especially with small businesses. President Clinton asked the first lady, Hillary Rodham Clinton to head up a task force that would develop this plan. After it was completed, Mrs. Clinton appeared for several days of testimony before five congressional committees on health care. Although the plan was only about 2/3 as long of the future Obamacare bill, it was still a hefty 1300 pages and very complex. But, congress and America viewed it as government-run health care, and in 1994 this was a very tough sell. In that year, the bill waned and so did support for the Democrats. The mid-term elections of 1994 were a disaster for the democrats, and they lost control of the House for the first time since the 1950's. They laid all the blame on Clinton's Health Security Act.
Bill Clinton outlined his plan in his State of the Union Address of 1994:
"Now, our approach protects the quality of care and people's choices. It builds on what works today in the private sector, to expand employer-based coverage, to guarantee private insurance for every American. And I might say, employer-based private insurance for every American was proposed 20 years ago by President Richard Nixon to the United States Congress. It was a good idea then, and it's a better idea today.
Why do we want guaranteed private insurance? Because right now 9 out of 10 people who have insurance get it through their employers. And that should continue. And if your employer is providing good benefits at reasonable prices, that should continue, too. That ought to make the Congress and the President feel better.
Our goal is health insurance everybody can depend on: comprehensive benefits that cover preventive care and prescription drugs; health premiums that don't just explode when you get sick or you get older; the power, no matter how small your business is, to choose dependable insurance at the same competitive rates governments and big business get today; one simple form for people who are sick; and most of all, the freedom to choose a plan and the right to choose your own doctor."
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https://historyrat.wordpress.com/2013/02/24/1993-health-care-reform-almost-sinking-a-presidency/
http://en.wikipedia.org/
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