History Resources

Inside the Vault: Harry Truman on National Healthcare

by Gilder Lehrman Institute Staff

During World War II, medical examinations for military service revealed that about thirty percent of Americans were unfit for service due to physical or mental disability. Immediately following the war, President Truman addressed Congress on the inaccessibility of medical care, framing the health crisis as a national security issue, and proposed a national healthcare plan. While the plan did not receive majority support in Congress, Truman continued to promote a federal health insurance plan and public funding for medical facilities throughout his presidency, including in a 1951 letter to Dr. Channing Frothingham of Boston.

On December 5, 2024, our curators discussed President Truman’s letter to Dr. Frothingham about Truman’s national healthcare plan with Professor Barbara Perry, director of Presidential Studies at the University of Virginia’s Miller Center.

Download the slides from the program here.

FEATURED DOCUMENT

USE THE TIMESTAMPS BELOW TO JUMP TO THE TOPIC YOU WANT TO VIEW

0:00–1:49: Today’s Document
01:50–06:03: National Healthcare in America
06:04–09:11: Harry Truman on National Healthcare
09:12–12:41: Opposition to National Healthcare
12:42–28:19: The Polio Epidemic in the 1950s
28:20–31:08: Opposition to Social Security
31:08–39:23: Medicare and Lyndon B. Johnson
35:50–38:03: Health Disparities in the South
38:04–42:03: Community Clinics
42:04–1:05:16: Q&A

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