http://www.freep.com/article/20091222/NEWS15/91222024/1319/Most-voters-against-health-care-reform-plans-poll-findsWASHINGTON – A new nationwide poll suggests a majority of American voters disapprove of the health care reform plans being discussed in Congress and President Barack Obama’s handling of the issue.
Quinnipiac University’s Polling Institute in Connecticut surveyed 1,616 registered voters from Dec. 15-20 and found 53% “mostly disapprove” of the health care changes being considered in Congress, compared to 36% who “mostly approve.” Meanwhile 56% disapprove of Obama’s handling of the issue compared to 38% who approve.
The poll has a margin of error of 2.4 percentage points.
Quinnipiac’s survey came out just as the Senate is preparing to pass a health care bill, setting up a conference committee with the House to decide on a final health care reform measure early next year.
The months of discussions over health care reform haven’t been good for Obama’s standing on the issue.
"As President Barack Obama's numbers on health care have declined so has his margin over Republicans on whom American voters trust most on the issue," said Peter Brown, assistant director of the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute. "In July he enjoyed a 20-point edge on the trust question, and that margin has been narrowing, to 45-40% percent today."
Voters may oppose the health care plans overall, but they support some items which have been stripped from the Senate bill: Fifty-six percent of respondents support the so-called “public option” government health plan compared to 38% who oppose it. Meanwhile, voters support allowing younger people to buy into Medicare by a 64%-30% margin.
The public option plan survives in the House version of the bill only, for now.
Topic: POLL: Majority of Americans Disapproved of Reform Plan (Read 1060 times)