In my opinion, it is the society at large that induces people to seek out welfare. However, in my opinion, it is also the lack of family support once someone falls off their feet in life. It seems much like a policy and political issue. Everyone will argue it in a political stance, but it seems more fitting to realize this is a social issue. An issue that isn't about the country, state or city at large, but rather the social-family dynamic.
Health care expenditures in constant 2005 Dollars per Capita, 1930-2011. In 1965, Medicare and Medicaid were created, and boatloads of printed money have been funneled into them ever since. Why doesn't health care get cheaper, like laptops do nowadays? What would happen to the price of laptops if the state guaranteed laptops for everyone?
You also realize we're the fastest growing industrialized nation in terms of population too right? Population in 1930: 122,775,046 Population Now: 312,696,753 Keep in mind that this is determined by the census, and likely doesn't count the vast number of illegals we have in the country, who somehow still get jobs and still get welfare/insurance. The population has almost tripled in less than a century. So sure, while medicare/medicaid have contributed to the rise in costs, I highly doubt we'd still be near 1930 levels if Medicare/Medicaid didn't exist.
Do you even know what Per Capita means? In it's purest meaning, meaning the original meaning, it's a latin term meaning "by head" or "by the head". So again, even with inflation considered, and even with the advent of medicaid/medicare...please explain to me why when the amount of heads have tripled, why the cost of healthcare shouldn't rise as well to be able to cover the higher population? Laptops are only cheaper because they cost less to build and companies are using shitty parts and cheap builds to reduce costs. This is why my first cellphone and first TV from 15 years ago still works incredible, yet HDTVs, Gaming Consoles, and new cellphones shit out after only a few years. You build cheap, you sell for cheap, The healthcare industry is not a fucking computer. It's a lot more involved than that. If it was that easy to fix, I'm pretty damn sure we would've had healthcare for all (and for cheap) a good 20 years ago. It just doesn't work the same as a laptop because it's totally different.