Final answer:
Before the U.S. established Medicare, it was C) Germany that had a health insurance system similar to the early U.S. system, having implemented a form of workers' insurance as early as 1883. Other countries like the UK, Canada, and Australia had different systems that are not as closely related to the U.S. model prior to Medicare.
Step-by-step explanation:
Prior to the establishment of the Medicare program in 1965 in the United States, it was Germany that first provided a system of health insurance that had similarities to the U.S system. In 1883, Germany passed the Health Insurance Law, mandating that employers provide health insurance for workers, funded through a combination of worker contributions and employer contributions. This law was part of Germany's social insurance system started by Chancellor Otto von Bismarck. Further extensions of this system provided insurance coverage to the elderly and those with disabilities.
The Canadian healthcare system, which included Canada's own Medicare, was not like the U.S. system prior to the U.S. establishing Medicare. Canada's system is categorized as universal healthcare, with healthcare being publicly funded but provided by private entities, a system established by the Canada Health Act of 1970. The United Kingdom has a predominantly government-run healthcare system, the National Health Service (NHS), established post-World War II, which is considered a single-payer system rather than insurance-based like the U.S. system. Similarly, Australia has a public health system known as Medicare, established in 1984, which provides healthcare to all Australian citizens, permanent residents, and certain visitors, which is funded through a mix of general revenue and a Medicare Levy, making it distinct from the employer-based insurance model of the U.S.
Therefore, the correct answer to the question "Prior to establishing the Medicare program in 1968, what country provided insurance in a manner that was similar to the United States?" is C) Germany. The United States' Medicare is a federal health insurance program primarily for people over 65, akin to a single-payer system, although it does not cover all medical expenses or all Americans as a universal healthcare system would.