Medicare is socialized medicine. I think it is important to note this. Every American 65 years and older gets their healthcare paid for by the government.
A lot of people, particularly on the Right, hate socialized medicine but like Medicare. In their misunderstanding of what Medicare is they trick themselves into believing that Medicare is a uniquely American idea of healthcare. It isn’t. It is socialized medicine for every American 65 and older pure and simple.
I think if people would start calling Medicare socialized medicine, some opponents of socialized medicine just because the word socialized is in the phrase would see it for what it is — a government run program designed to control the costs of healthcare. And, as far as I can tell, people actually like Medicare, which is the same feeling that most of the citizens of other countries who have socialized medicine have about their healthcare system.