Poll Shows Most Americans Think Individual Mandate Will Be Struck Down
January 30, 2012
Sarah Kliff writes in the Washington Post (1/27) "Wonkblog" that most Americans "expect" the US Supreme Court to rule against the Affordable Care Act's provision requiring people to purchase health insurance, according to a new Kaiser Family Foundation poll released yesterday. Less than a third of respondents think that piece of the legislation will be upheld, "and that number drops to 17 percent when individuals are asked about how they would personally rule on the issue," Kliff writes.
Politico (1/27, Nather) reports the poll indicates the American public wants to keep the law in place, but lose the individual mandate. "The survey found that 54 percent of Americans want the Supreme Court to get rid of the requirement that nearly all Americans buy health insurance. But only 40 percent want the law to be repealed completely or replaced with a Republican alternative."
CQ (1/27, Subscription Publication) reports "the pessimistic outlook on the court decision on the individual mandate, combined with continuing lackluster approval ratings for the overall law, would seem to show that in the nearly two years since the law was passed the Obama administration has stopped short of closing the sale when it comes to a sweeping plan for changing the nation's health care system."
The Wall Street Journal (1/27, Radnofsky) reports the poll could shape the upcoming Republican primary and presidential elections. The Journal notes that GOP disapproval of the law is more intense than Democratic support for it. The poll found that 57 percent of Republicans hold a very unfavorable view of the legislation, while only 35 percent of Democrats said their view was very favorable. According to the Journal, the poll also found that a plurality of Republican voters don't view the state healthcare legislation passed by former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney as being too similar to the 2010 Federal law. Thirty percent of Republicans said they thought Romney's position on healthcare is similar or very similar to President Obama's; 49 percent said the two positions are different or very different.