To address this increased need for more hospitals closer to where patients lived, the US government __________.

• A. Passed the Hill-Burton Act
• B. Created the Medicare program
• C. Implemented the Affordable Care Act
• D. Created the Truman Health Act

Answer: (A)

Expanding hospital capacity where people live is achieved by government funding that spurs construction and modernization of facilities across communities. The Hill-Burton Act of 1946 provided federal grants and loans specifically to build, expand, and upgrade hospitals and related facilities, with attention to distributing beds more broadly so care was closer to patients’ neighborhoods. This targeted approach directly increases local access by increasing supply. Medicare, created later, focuses on financing care for specific groups rather than expanding where hospitals are built. The Affordable Care Act centers on insurance coverage and payment reform, not hospital construction. A Truman Health Act was proposed but never enacted. So, the action that best matches the goal of more hospitals closer to patients is funding for hospital construction and modernization through the Hill-Burton Act.