Health Insurance Used To Be Less Complicated

Do you ever wonder how America got into the mess that is the current state of health insurance? It requires a history lesson, so settle in. It hasn't always been such a quagmire that fills hours worth of radio and television debate and has even cost and won the presidency for several candidates. It is a polarizing debate that has gone on for so long that many people have forgotten that it hasn't always been such a divisive issue.

Prior to World War II, as the country was just recovering from the Great Depression in which many people were unemployed and company health benefits were unheard of, no one took guaranteed health insurance for granted because it simply did not exist. You fended for yourself and, as a result, the life expectancy of the average American was a lot lower than it is today. When the government put a ban on giving out employee raises during the hard times of World War II, employers had to come up with another way to reward its employees. They realized that if they couldn't give raises to their employees they could at least offer health insurance as a perk. Needless to say, the idea went over well with the employees and they were not giving it back once the war was over and everyone came home.

Initially health insurance benefits were paid for completely by the employer but as time has gone on and health insurance costs have risen gradually more of the premiums have had to be subsidized by the employees and their families. This increasing cost has resulted in an enormous financial burden on these individuals who are now working at a lower rate of salary while having to pay for most of their own health insurance coverage.

Things have gotten so bad on the health insurance front that each year fewer employers offer this benefit to employees at all resulting in even more financial hardship. What once seemed to be a great gift has gradually become a curse and over time this benefit of employment has grown to mean less and cost more.

People can blame the government for not taking care of health care reform a lot sooner, but that's all water over the bridge. The system is broken and the constant squabbling between the red and blue side of congress is making things a lot more difficult to foresee a settlement. Until a conclusion is reached it is very important to make sure you are covered for anything.