Hoerle, Ellen2009-05-192009-05-192009-05-05Hoerle, Ellen. May 5, 2009. May 19, 2009. Hubert H. Humphrey Institute of Public Affairs. Master of Public Policyhttps://hdl.handle.net/11299/50138professional paper for the fulfillment of the Masters of Public Policy degreeIt is 2009 and health care reform is back, after a fifteen-year hiatus from the national political spotlight. A sixty-year history of various legislative initiatives has led to an expansion of the public sector of health insurance coverage, known as Medicare and Medicaid, but has continued to fall short of comprehensive reform. Comprehensive health care reform would provide universal health care insurance coverage for all Americans and include some type of system of cost controls so health care expenditures don't continue to increase at rates that threaten the budgets of other public programs such as K-12 and higher education.en-UShealth care reformMedicareMedicaidThesis or Dissertation