The roots of the U.S. healthcare crisis can be traced back to the late 19th and early 20th centuries, when industrialists like John D. Rockefeller transformed medicine into a centralized, profit-driven system, as detailed in E. Richard Brown’s "Rockefeller Medicine Men." Their philanthropic efforts, guided by figures like Frederick T. Gates, established the medical-industrial complex, reshaping healthcare through the creation of research institutions, university-affiliated medical schools and public health initiatives. The Flexner Report of 1910, supported by Rockefeller philanthropies, elevated medical education but also marginalized schools serving poor and minority communities, perpetuating healthcare inequities. The report, along with the full-time plan for medical faculty, consolidated power among academic doctors and aligned the profession with capitalist values. These historical developments, driven by scientific progress and capitalist interests, laid the foundation for today’s high-cost, inequitable healthcare system.

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