Polls the Pols aren't watching
Two recent polls, barely noticed in the mainstream media, remind us that the public is very much behind a Medicare for All health care reform solution.
The group Consumer Watchdog released the results of a poll that shows that 64% of Americans support expanding Medicare as a choice for everyone as an option to private health insurance. Even when reminded that this could increase taxes the support for the concept dropped only a few points.
Do you favor a public health plan option?
Another CBS/New York Times poll released earlier in the month revealed that 59% of Americans believe the government should provide national health insurance.
This is not a sudden change. Two years ago, CBS reported that only 8% felt that health care in the US needed only minor changes. Ninety per cent said the U.S. health care system needs fundamental change or needs to be completely rebuilt. I’m not sure even CBS could explain the difference in those two perspectives.
CBS Poll
This should not be a surprise. Physicians for a National Health Program have argued that 60% of health care spending is already supported with tax dollars. I suspect that the American public knows in their gut what the PHNP maintains: that we are paying more in taxes for health care than any other country on the planet and yet too many of us are not getting health care.
Now I don’t maintain that 60% of health care dollars equals 60% of health care patients. I do think there are a lot of patients who are paying taxes and wondering what their government is doing for them
And too many politicians are doing nothing.
