what is the idea behind a single payer system of health insurance
Single-payer healthcare Single-payer healthcare is a healthcare system financed by taxes that covers the costs of essential healthcare for all residents, with costs covered by a single public system (hence 'single-payer').[1][2] Alternatively, a multi-payer healthcare system is one in which private, qualified individuals or their employers pay for health insurance with various limits on healthcare coverage via multiple private or public sources.[3][4]
Health insurance in the United States Accident insurance was first offered in the United States by the Franklin Health Assurance Company of Massachusetts. This firm, founded in 1850, offered insurance against injuries arising from railroad and steamboat accidents. Sixty organizations were offering accident insurance in the US by 1866, but the industry consolidated rapidly soon thereafter. While there were earlier experiments, sickness coverage in the US effectively dates from 1890. The first employer-sponsored group disability policy was issued in 1911, but this plan's primary purpose was replacing wages lost because the worker was unable to work, not medical expenses.[18]