In the late 1940s, the United Kingdom was busily reassembling country and what remained of the empire in the aftermath of World War II. Among many revelations, the war had convinced Britain’s leaders of the need to provide healthcare for all in the event of calamity upending the basic functions of a civilized society. With that, the UK’s National Health Service (NHS) was born.

With the United States in the midst of its own upheaval, it’s time for a related question: Might the current COVID-19 situation give rise to significant changes to the American healthcare system?

Virtually no one thinks the correct answer is ‘No.’ Things will change. The question is how and to what extent. The healthcare system in place in the United States now is dramatically more complex than that in use by Britons after WW II. There are so many moving parts, so many things that can break.

So, in which aspects of the current American healthcare system should we see changes after COVID-19 is dealt with?