[thecodont]

Yes. During WW2 there were wage controls put on by the fedgov, and companies began to offer "medical insurance" to employees as a way to increase compensation without violating the rules.

Kaiser started this, right?

[Still Thinking]

Yes. Their in-house system became Kaiser Permanente.

[ModelBreaker]

“Kaiser started this, right? “

No Roosevelt and the unions. They saw it as a way to make unionizing easier. Then it spread and became the defacto way folks get health insurance.