In 1965, the United States government enacted legislation to provide
low-income individuals with quality health care and related services.
Initially viewed as the friendless stepchild of Medicare, Medicaid has
grown exponentially since its inception, becoming a formidable force of
its own. Funded jointly by the national government and each of the fifty
states, the program is now the fourth most expensive item in the federal
budget and the second largest category of spending for almost every
state. Now, under the new, historic health care reform legislation,
Medicaid is scheduled to include sixteen million more people.
Laura Katz Olson, an expert on health, aging, and long-term care policy,
unravels the multifaceted and perplexing puzzle of Medicaid with respect
to those who invest in and benefit from the program. Assessing the
social, political, and economic dynamics that have shaped Medicaid for
almost half a century, she helps readers of all backgrounds understand
the entrenched and powerful interests woven into the system that have
been instrumental in swelling costs and holding elected officials
hostage. Addressing such fundamental questions as whether patients
receive good care and whether Medicaid meets the needs of the low-income
population it is supposed to serve, Olson evaluates the extent to which
the program is an appropriate foundation for health care reform.
