Slate. com has an article about the healthcare system in the
United States during the early 20th century and what Progressives
wanted to do with it. The article can be found here: http://www.slate.com/id/2247376/
Specifically in 1915: Progressives in several state legislatures
tries introduced legislation that would create government health
insurance with the following features:
1. Participants and their families would be guaranteed all
medical and hospital expenses, income replacement for up to six
months, $50 for funeral expenses, complete coverage of labor and
delivery costs, and eight weeks of maternity leave.
2. The plan would cost $2 per worker. Employers would be $1.20,
employees .40 cents, and the state governments .40 cents.
3. Any worker who earned less than $100 a month would be
obligated to participate. For particularly low wage employees,
employers would have to pay more and employees less.
In OTL no state passed said legislation. The fact that the
Progressive health insurance plan resembled the German plan did not
help. Neither did the Red Scare. Lets say that the Progressives manage
to get their health insurance legislation passed in some of the more
progressive states: Lets say at least New York, California, Wisconsin,
Minnesota, Illinois, Ohio, Mass., and maybe a few other states,
particularly those receiving a lot of immigrants and undergoing heavy
industrialization/urbanization, institute the program before America
enters WWI. The majority of states would not.
Would other states follow the lead of the original states and
institute health insurance legislation if its prove to be a success?
How many workers, besides those obligated to participate would
participate? How would the South deal with state health insurance
considering the ever present racism towards African-Americans? The
Southern states might be under pressure from lower income Southern
whites but most Southern whites would at the same time not want
African-Americans to receive equal benefits. How would the insurance
policies evolve over time?
If the Great Depression occurs on schedule along with FDR's election
and the New Deal, would FDR attempt to create a national healthcare
system like he wanted to since most people would already be getting
their health insurance from their state governments? |
