The History of Medicare
Click on the timeline to view the history of Medicare.
Figure 1. History of Medicare Timeline.
1960s
July 30, 1965: President Lyndon Johnson signs the Medicare and Medicaid Programs into law.
1966: Title XVIII of the Social Security Act establishes Medicare to provide health insurance for people ages 65 and older. The program includes Medicare Part A and Part B, also known as Original Medicare.
Title XIX establishes Medicaid to pay for medical assistance for certain individuals and families with low incomes and limited resources.
The Social Security Administration (SSA) originally oversees the Medicare Program, while the Social and Rehabilitation Service (SRS) works with the federally funded state Medicaid Program. SSA and SRS were agencies in the Department of Health, Education and Welfare that eventually became the HHS.
1970s
1972: Congress expands the Medicare Program to include certain disabled individuals and individuals with ESRD.
1977: The Department of Health, Education and Welfare creates The Health Care Financing Administration to coordinate the Medicare and Medicaid Programs.
1980s
1980: The Department of Health, Education and Welfare divided into the Department of Education and HHS.
1990s
1997: Medicare offers Part C health care options.
2000s
2000: Congress approves the Medicare and Medicaid and State Children’s Health Insurance Program (CHIP), Benefits Improvement and Protection Act. The legislation waives the 24-month waiting period before Medicare entitlement for people with Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis, also known as ALS or Lou Gehrig’s disease, and who are eligible for Social Security disability benefits. The act also improves preventive benefits and benefits for some drugs.
2001: HCFA renamed the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS).
2003: The Medicare Prescription Drug Improvement and Modernization Act, or MMA, makes Medicare a more prevention-focused program. The MMA also allows Medicare Advantage plans.
2006: The Medicare drug plan legislated in the MMA begins.
2008: The Medicare Improvements for Patients and Providers Act of 2008:
- Improves coverage of mental health, supplemental, and preventive health care services
- Creates new rules for Medicare Advantage marketing
2010s
2010: The Affordable Care Act (ACA) includes reforms that generate savings and offer new benefits and services to help keep people with Medicare healthy.
2020s
Today, Medicare covers over 63 million Americans.
2021: Section 3021 of the Affordable Care Act creates the ESRD Treatment Choices (ETC) Model. The model gives ESRD patients the freedom to choose ESRD treatment that best works with their lifestyles.
2022: ETC Model policies are updated to encourage dialysis facilities and health care providers to decrease disparities in rates of home dialysis and kidney transplants among ESRD patients with the Health Equity Incentive under the ESRD Prospective Payment System (PPS).