Criticism Over Obama’s Health Care Logo |
Categories: Logo Design Tips
Written By: Nora Reed
Logos have proved time and time again that they are an important part of creating an identity. It seems President Obama and his administration have realized that, therefore, they have created quite a buzz with their recent logo use.

We were first introduced to Obama’s campaign logo during his run for President. The logo is the “O” with the American flag strips that was a big conversation starter, since it resembled the newly designed Pepsi logo, which is also a circle “O” shape containing a stripe of white across a mass of red and blue.

It seems that the buzz has begun once again with the administration’s new attempt at Obama’s health care logo.

The logo contains the original Obama Hope Logo with an added caduceus integrated at the top. The caduceus is traditionally known to represent the medical profession. The light blue, mono toned background shows the United States covered with hopeful people in front of a rising sun. The overall design looks very hopeful and promising. The people look happy and are looking forward to a bright future, but is it all a lie?
The big argument that the new logo brought up is not about how legitimate the hope that the logo offers is, but the debate is over the way the logo seems to resemble a specific Nazi symbol. It seems that the government logo designers do not think with much originality considering it is so easy to find symbols that compare closely to them, or are people simply looking for flaws?

I personally think that the comparison is reaching a bit. Yes, there is a bird with outstretched wings, which could look like the wings of the caduceus and a circular Nazi symbol at its feet, which could look similar to the round design of the Obama Hope Logo, but the only thing that looks similar is the outward shape. If you stare at both designs and blur your eyes, then I would agree that the outward shapes look pretty similar. The symbol in the Obama Heath Care Logo does have wings, but it’s not a bird. The caduceus is a traditional symbol that has existed since the time of ancient Greeks and has been used to represent medicine for decades in North America. Is the American public so desperate to criticize that they will go to any measure?
-Nora Reed


August 27th, 2009 at 1:47 pm
I guess I can’t root for the Philadelphia Eagles anymore either since the Nazis used an eagle as a symbol. Dam Nazis ruining everything…
August 27th, 2009 at 3:49 pm
It’s refreshing to see a politician keeping his/her ego in check and really just looking out for what’s best for everyone. Oh…that’s Obama’s trademark branded logo being used as a centerpiece for healthcare reform. Nevermind then.
August 27th, 2009 at 9:49 pm
I was hoping the Obama Health Care logo would address a common mistake. The Rod of Asclepius(staff with a single snake) is the correct representation of medicine, not the Caduceus.
August 28th, 2009 at 6:43 pm
Interesting debate. I like it.
August 30th, 2009 at 2:26 am
I personally think we should care about hat this logo is resembling not what it was similar to. Any way thanks for the post
August 31st, 2009 at 9:55 am
Azharif beat me to it. It drives me nuts to see the Caduceus in healthcare materials. Interestingly, the Caduceus actually is more appropriately associated with theft, deception and death than medicine. So…while it may not be an appropriate symbol for medicine, it’s certainly an appropriate symbol for the Health Insurance industry. >Zing!<
Also – I think the Obama logo has a lot more in common with the Bank of America logo than with Pepsi.
September 8th, 2009 at 7:36 am
I think that to a person who loves conspiracy they would look alike. But to educated people it is just another idea by a politician to use his personal symbol with the symbol of a cause that he is active in to make it look like anything that comes out of it was completely pioneered by him.
September 10th, 2009 at 12:35 pm
Wow….This Rush Limbaugh needs help. He sees the Obama Health Care Logo similar to the NAZI logo? How STUPID!!