Medicare Marks 44

In 1945, President Harry Truman asked Congress for legislation that would establish a national health insurance plan. After two decades of debate, the Medicare and Medicaid companion programs were signed into law on July 30, 1965, by President Lyndon Johnson with Truman at his side. Truman was the first to enroll in the Medicare program, which turned 44 on Thursday. Medicare now covers 46 million Americans and had expenditures of $455 billion in 2008, accounting for 15 percent of the federal budget. Between 2010 and 2030, the number of people in the program is projected to rise to 78 million.