Another Day with the Health Care Plan

obamahealthcarepic1-main_fullVoters still strongly oppose the health care reform plan proposed by President Obama and congressional Democrats and think Congress should focus instead on smaller bills that address problems individually rather than a comprehensive plan.

A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey finds that 41% of voters favor the proposed health care plan, while 56% oppose it. Those figures include 45% who strongly oppose the plan and just 23% who strongly favor it.

Support for and opposition to the plan are at the same levels they’ve been at since just after Thanksgiving.

Democrats continue to strongly support the health care plan much while it is opposed by Republicans and voters not affiliated with either major party. Seventy percent (70%) of the Political Class strongly favor the plan, while 57% of Mainstream voters strongly oppose it.

Sixty-three percent (63%) of all voters say a better strategy to reform the health care system would be to pass smaller bills that address problems individually. Twenty-seven percent (27%) still think passing a comprehensive bill that covers all aspects of the health care system is a better idea. Eleven percent (11%) are undecided.

Sixty-five percent (65%) of those who strongly support the president’s plan favor a comprehensive approach, while 85% of those who strongly oppose the current plan say smaller, individually-focused bills are a better way to go.

Earlier this month, just after the president called for a bipartisan summit meeting to get his health care reform plan back on track, 61% of voters said Congress should scrap that plan and start all over again. 

The latest findings, from a survey Sunday and Monday nights, come as the president prepares to convene the nationally televised summit meeting on Thursday. Obama is struggling to get some Republican support after the shock GOP win last month in Massachusetts’ special Senate election forced House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to admit that she didn’t have even enough Democratic votes to pass the plan.

But despite the president’s efforts since then to draw Republicans into the health care effort, voter opinions seem unchanged.

Just 38% of voters now think it is at least somewhat likely that the plan proposed by the president and congressional Democrats will become law this year, the lowest level of confidence in the bill’s passage to date. That number includes 13% who say passage into law is very likely. But 51% believe passage of the plan this year is unlikely, with 33% who say it’s not very likely and another 18% who view it as not at all likely.

Only 35% of voters believe Congress should pass health care reform before the upcoming midterm elections anyway. Fifty-four percent (54%) say Congress should wait until voters select new congressional representatives in November.

Interestingly, 63% of voters also think it would be better for the country if most incumbents in Congress were defeated this November.

This backlash against Democratic Senate incumbents in particular is being found in a number of states where Rasmussen Reports has been surveying recently, including Arkansas, California, Colorado, Indiana, Missouri, Nevada, North Dakota, Florida, Pennsylvania, Oregon, Washington and Wisconsin.

Thirty-four percent (34%) of voters now rate the president’s handling of the health care reform issue as good or excellent, while 50% think the president has done a poor job. These findings are comparable to voter feelings last month just after the Massachusetts special election.

Not surprisingly, most Democrats give Obama good or excellent marks, while most Republicans and unaffiliated voters rate his performance on health care as poor. Ninety-two percent (92%) of the Political Class say the president has done a good or excellent job. Sixty-one percent (61%) of Mainstream voters think he’s done a poor job on the health care issue.

Marzo 4, 2010 · Filed Under INTERNATIONAL

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