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Medicare and Medicaid
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President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Medicare Bill at a table beside former President Harry S. Truman, with Lady Bird Johnson and others standing behind them. U.S. President Barack Obama signing the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act at the White House on March 23, 2010.
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President Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Medicare Bill at a table beside former President Harry S. Truman, with Lady Bird Johnson and others standing behind them.
Lyndon B. Johnson: Medicare Former U.S. president Harry S. Truman (right) looking on as U.S. Pres. Lyndon B. Johnson signs the Medicare bill at the Harry S. Truman Library and Museum in Independence, Missouri, July 30, 1965.

Medicare and Medicaid

United States health insurance
Written by
David M. Mazie
Freelance journalist.
David M. Mazie
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Britannica Editors
Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree....
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•History

Medicare and Medicaid, two U.S. government programs that guarantee health insurance for the elderly and the poor, respectively. They were formally enacted in 1965 as amendments (Titles XVIII and XIX, respectively) to the Social Security Act (1935) and went into effect in 1966. The Medicare program covers most persons age 65 or older and consists of four related health insurance plans: a hospital insurance plan (called Part A); a supplementary medical insurance plan (Part B);...

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