One Nation Uninsured Summary

During the economic growth that erupted during the World War II era, Congress passed the Revenue Act of 1942 as a direct attempt to combat excessive wartime profiteering by companies. In “One Nation, Uninsured”, Jill Quadagno revealed that an unexpected side effect of this law swiftly arose when employers decided to provide health benefits to their workers as a way to reduce paying the mandated government taxes on excess profits. By providing these benefits, many companies in the industrial sector were able to recruit new workers who were willing to accept slightly reduced wages in exchange for receiving tax-deductible benefit plans, along with satisfy the demands by trade unions to include fringe benefits in employment contracts. The symbiotic relationship that resulted when employers took on the burden of purchasing health insurance plans for their employees became the foundation for the American employer-based health insurance system which is still being used today.

The Kaiser Family Foundation revealed that prior to the Affordable Care Act, around 43 million citizens were unemployed in the United States and unfortunately not eligible to obtain health insurance under this employer-based system. While the Affordable Care Act’s objective to bridge the coverage gaps of this employer-based system, 28 million Americans still remain uninsured. Some workers prefer to take on cash paying jobs for personal reasons and as a result, they often trade off receiving benefits such as health care. Some immoral companies have no regard for acting in the best interest of their employees and will hire part time workers simply because this allows them to avoid paying them benefits such as health