The Homa Files

Punchline: Most voters believe the current plan will harm the economy, cost more than projected, raise the cost of care, and lead to higher middle-class taxes.

 
http://www.pollster.com/polls/us/jobapproval-presobama-health.php?xml=http://www.pollster.com/flashcharts/content/xml/USObamaJobPresHealth.xml&choices=Disapprove,Approve&phone=&ivr=&internet=&mail=&smoothing=&from_date=&to_date=&min_pct=&max_pct=&grid=&points=1&lines=1&colors=Disapprove-BF0014,Approve-000000,Undecided-68228B

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Here’s Why …

Excerpted from WSJ: Why Obama Can’t Move the Health-Care Numbers, March 9, 2010

One of the more amazing aspects of the health-care debate is how steady public opinion has remained. Despite repeated and intense sales efforts by the president and his allies in Congress, most Americans consistently oppose the plan that has become the centerpiece of this legislative season.

In 15 consecutive Rasmussen Reports polls conducted over the past four months, for every person who strongly favors it, two are strongly opposed.

The reason President Obama can’t move the numbers and build public support is because the fundamentals are stacked against him. Most voters believe the current plan will harm the economy, cost more than projected, raise the cost of care, and lead to higher middle-class taxes.

• 57% of voters believe that passage of the legislation would hurt the economy, while only 25% believe it would help.
• Voters think reducing spending is more important than reducing the deficit.
• People simply don’t trust the official projections: 81% of voters say it’s likely the plan will end up costing more than projected.
• 66% of voters believe passage of the president’s plan will lead to higher deficits
• 78% say it’s at least somewhat likely to mean higher middle-class taxes.
• Fifty-nine percent of voters say that the biggest problem with the health-care system is the cost: They want reform that will bring down the cost of care.
• Only 17% now believe it will reduce the cost of care.
• For most voters, the notion that you need to spend an additional trillion dollars doesn’t make sense. If the program is supposed to save money, why does it cost anything at all?
• The overwhelming majority of voters have insurance coverage, and 76% rate their own coverage as good or excellent.
• Half of these voters say it’s likely that if the congressional health bill becomes law, they would be forced to switch insurance coverage—a prospect hardly anyone ever relishes.

Full article:
http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748704784904575111993559174212.html

This entry was posted on March 11, 2010 at 7:39 am and is filed under Health Care / Medical Insurance. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.