War, Politics, and Philanthropy: The History of Rehabilitation Medicine describes the development of this remarkable field of medical care from its inception in WWI and WWII through its dramatic expansion during the 1980s, as stimulated by the Medicare program. The book vividly describes how the field developed in response to the need for care and rehabilitation of wounded soldiers, disabled veterans, and members of the workforce in the 1940s and 1950s. It focuses on the leadership and contributions of statesman Bernard Baruch, civil servant extraordinaire Mary Switzer, physicians Henry Kessler, Frank Krusen, and Howard Rusk, and the professional and disability associations with which they collaborated. The book ends with the crescendo of the enactment of the Americans with Disabilities Act, which embodied the vision and goals of rehabilitation medicine since the 1960s.

"Verille provides an excellent account of the confluences that brought rehabilitation medicine into the forefront during the last century, and of the specialty's relevance to the 21st century. . . . This book tells a story that is not necessarily based on chance or vision, but rather on the serendipitous nature of history, along with a willingness to risk and collaborate. Those in medicine and allied health professions will find it an account well worth reading. Recommended." - CHOICE, April 2010