This Article  • References  • Full text PDF  • Send to a friend  • Save in My Folder  • Save to citation manager  • Permissions  Citing Articles  • Citation map  • Citing articles on HighWire  • Citing articles on Web of Science (14)  • Contact me when this article is cited  Related Content  • Similar articles in JAMA  Social Bookmarking   What's this?

Preparing for the Future

Bruce C. Viadeck, PhD; Kathleen M. King, MA

JAMA. 1995;274(3):259-262.

	Since this article does not have an abstract, we have provided the first 150 words of the full text PDF and any section headings.

Medicare's 30th anniversary is an appropriate time for celebration. Few programs, public or private, have had so demonstrably beneficial an impact on so many Americans as Medicare. But it is also a time both to reflect on Medicare's role in our society at large and to think strategically about how Medicare can fulfill its missions in the years ahead. In the increasingly contentious political environment, Medicare has been called a dinosaur—a program that is too costly, is too inefficient, and has outlived its usefulness. In the view of Medicare's critics, radical restructuring is the only cure. Although improvements can and should be made to Medicare, those calling for the end of Medicare as we know it are most charitably described as misguided. Medicare is responsible for major improvements in the health of elderly and disabled citizens, is well managed, and provides the financial underpinning for much of the US health . . . [Full Text PDF of this Article]

Author Affiliations
From the Office of the Administrator, Health Care Financing Administration, Washington, DC.

Footnotes
Reprint requests to Medicare 30th Anniversary, Health Care Financing Administration, Office of Professional Relations, Room 423H, Hubert H. Humphrey Bldg, 200 Independence Ave SW, Washington, DC 20201 (Dr Vladeck).

CiteULike    Connotea    Del.icio.us    Digg    Reddit    Technorati    Twitter     What's this?