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About the History of Medicare in Amelia, Virginia, and the Surrounding Areas
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Learn the History of Medicare
Easy Medicare 4 You wants to help you stay informed. It can be easier to understand how the Medicare system works when you know the history of the system. Take a moment and read through the material we have provided. You might learn something new and feel a bit more informed today than you did yesterday. If you have any questions, be sure to reach out to us right away.
a program providing medical care
Originally, the name "Medicare" in the United States referred to a program providing medical care for families of people serving in the military as part of the Dependents' Medical Care Act, which was passed in 1956 President Dwight D. Eisenhower held the first White House Conference on Aging in January 1961
Title XVIII of the Social Security Act
In July 1965 during Lyndon Johnson Presidency, Congress enacted Medicare under Title XVIII of the Social Security Act to provide health insurance to people age 65 and older, regardless of income or medical history Johnson signed the Social Security Amendments of 1965 into law on July 30, 1965
Medicare has been operating for just over a half century
Before Medicare was created, only approximately 60% of people over the age of 65 had health insurance, with coverage often unavailable or unaffordable to many others, as older adults paid more than three times as much for health insurance as younger people.
Medicare has been operating for just over a half century and, during that time, has undergone several changes. Since 1965, the program's provisions have expanded to include benefits for speech, physical, and chiropractic therapy in 1972 Medicare added the option of payments to health maintenance organizations (HMO) in the 1970s. The government added hospice benefits to aid elderly people on a temporary basis in 1982 and made this permanent in 1984. Congress further expanded Medicare in 2001 to cover younger people with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS, or Lou Gehrig's disease). As the years progressed, Congress expanded Medicare eligibility to younger people with permanent disabilities who receive Social Security Disability Insurance (SSDI) payments and to those with end-stage renal disease (ESRD). The association with HMOs that began in the 1970s was formalized and expanded under President Bill Clinton in 1997 as Medicare Part C (although not all Part C health plans sponsors have to be HMOs, about 75% are). In 2003, under President George W. Bush, a Medicare program for covering almost all self-administered prescription drugs was passed (and went into effect in 2006) as Medicare Part D.