Only 17 Percent of Americans Approve of Health Care Bill

A handful of Republican senators still oppose the GOP health care bill, which led to a delay of the Senate vote. And according to a recent study, the number of Americans who oppose the bill is many times more than that.

• Just 17 percent of Americans approve of the Better Care Reconciliation Act according to a poll conducted by NPR/PBS Newshour/Marist.
• A “disapprove” response was given by 55 percent of those polled while around 25 percent claimed they did not have enough knowledge of the bill to provide an answer.
• Broken down by party lines, just eight percent of Democrats approved of the bill while 78 percent disapproved.
• Among Republicans, 35 percent approved of the bill while 21 percent did not.
• Perhaps even more troubling for GOP leaders is that a whopping 39 percent of Republicans polled said they did not have enough knowledge of the bill to provide an answer compared to just 13 percent of Democrats and 17 percent of independent voters.
• Among independent voters, 13 percent approved of the bill and 68 percent disapproved.

Reasons for Opposition

The Senate health care bill has left Americans with plenty of reasons for opposition. Perhaps the biggest point of contention is that the bill is set to leave over 20 million more Americans without insurance, according to the Congressional Budget Office. Other unpopular features of the bill that have drawn criticism include:

• Insurers will be allowed to charge older adults five times more for a premium than a younger adult. Currently, insurers are capped at charging older adults three times more than younger people.
• Decreased funding for Medicaid that totals $772 billion by 2026.
• States will be allowed to opt out of Obamacare’s requirement to provide coverage for essential health benefits.
• A mandated six-month waiting period for people who had a lapse in coverage.

The Senate had hoped to vote on the bill prior to the weeklong recess that begins July 3, 2017. However, that vote was delayed after some Republican senators expressed wavering support of the bill. The Senate will now have to wait until at least July 10 to vote.

Learn more about the AHCA by reading these featured articles:

• Will Trumpcare Affect Employer-Sponsored Plans?
• The CBO Report on Trumpcare
• Is Congress Really Exempt From Trumpcare?

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Sources:

Marist Poll: http://maristpoll.marist.edu/npr-pbs-newshour-marist-poll/

NY Times: https://www.nytimes.com/2017/06/26/us/politics/senate-health-care-bill-republican.html

ABC News: http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/fact-check-senate-health-care-bill-cut-medicaid

HealthAffairs.org: http://healthaffairs.org/blog/2017/06/26/amended-senate-bill-includes-waiting-period-for-those-who-let-coverage-lapse/