when did public health start in the united states
United States Public Health Service The Public Health Service Act of 1944 structured the United States Public Health Service (PHS), founded in 1798, as the primary division of the U.S. Department of Health, Education and Welfare (HEW; which was established in 1953), which later became the United States Department of Health and Human Services in 1979â€“1980 (when the Education agencies were separated into their own U.S. Department of Education). The Office of the Surgeon General was created in 1871. The PHS comprises all Agency Divisions of Health and Human Services and the Commissioned Corps. The Assistant Secretary for Health (ASH) oversees the PHS and the United States Public Health Service Commissioned Corps.[1][2]
Health insurance coverage in the United States Health insurance coverage in the United States is provided by several public and private sources. During 2016, the U.S. population overall was approximately 325 million, with 53 million persons 65 years of age and over covered by the federal Medicare program. The 272 million non-institutional persons under age 65 either obtained their coverage from employer-based (155 million) or non-employer based (90 million) sources, or were uninsured (27 million).[1] Approximately 15 million military personnel received coverage through the Veteran's Administration.[2] During the year 2016, 91.2% of Americans had health insurance coverage.[3] Despite being among the top world economic powers, the US remains the sole industrialized nation in the world without universal health care coverage.[4][5]