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Given a passage and a question, find the answer to the question based on the passage. The answer should consist of only one word that lies in the span of only one of the sentences in the passage.

Paragraph: In the United States , Medicare is a single - payer , national social insurance program administered by the U.S. federal government since 1966 , currently using about 30 -- 50 private insurance companies across the United States under contract for administration . United States Medicare is funded by a payroll tax , premiums and surtaxes from beneficiaries , and general revenue . It provides health insurance for Americans aged 65 and older who have worked and paid into the system through the payroll tax . It also provides health insurance to younger people with some disability status as determined by the Social Security Administration , as well as people with end stage renal disease and amyotrophic lateral sclerosis .
Question: when did medicare begin in the united states

Output:
1966