50 Years of Dysfunction: The Failures of Medicare and Medicaid

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Heritage Foundation:

Fifty years ago, on July 30, 1965, President Lyndon B. Johnson signed legislation creating the nation’s two largest federal health entitlements, Medicare and Medicaid.

 

Medicare was created as a social insurance program for seniors and those with disabilities. It is financed primarily by payroll taxes collected during a recipients working life, and secondarily by personal and business income taxes.

 

Medicaid was designed as a welfare program to provide health care services to vulnerable low income groups. Medicaid is jointly financed by federal and state governments.