According to Republican pollster Rasmussen, "62% Oppose Single-Payer Health Care System."
That's a LOT of people! Single Payer must be REALLY BAD! So bad, that Rasmussen tells us "There is little difference in opinion between those voters who currently have health insurance and those who do not." Can you believe it! Even folks who DON'T have insurance, are against "socialized medicine!!!" I don't believe it, so I checked their line of questioning.
Raspublican asked "1* Do you favor or oppose a single payer health care system where the federal government provides coverage for everyone?
27% Favor
62% Oppose
12% Not sure
"
Does that sound like a fair description of single payer coverage? What if they had put the question like this:
The NHS is a rare example of truly socialized medicine. Health care is provided by a single payer — the British government — and is funded by the taxpayer. All appointments and treatments are free to the patient (though paid for through taxes), as are almost all prescription drugs. The maximum cost of receiving any drug prescribed by the NHS is $12. [Do you support or oppose a system like this for yourself?]
Or what if Raspublican had asked the question like THIS:
Like most developed countries, Britain ranks above the U.S. in most health measurements. Its citizens have a longer life expectancy and lower infant mortality, and the country has more acute-care hospital beds per capita and fewer deaths related to surgical or medical mishaps. Britain achieves these results while spending proportionally less on health care than the U.S. — about $2,500 per person in Britain, compared with $6,000 in the U.S. For these reasons, the World Health Organization (WHO) ranked Britain 18th in a global league table of health-care systems (the U.S. was ranked 37th). [Do you prefer that America aim towards the British Healthcare model - or the status quo?]
Thanks to
Time for the Above!
Raspublican's second question:
"2* Would a single payer healthcare system lead to higher healthcare costs, lower healthcare costs or would costs remain about the same?
59% Higher healthcare costs
16% lower healthcare costs
16% Costs would remain about the same
9% Not sure"
Of Course Raspublican doesn't ask that 59 percent on what they base their answer. But imagine if they asked it like this:
Currently, the U.S. health care system is outrageously expensive, yet inadequate. Despite spending more than twice as much as the rest of the industrialized nations ($8,160 per capita), the United States performs poorly in comparison on major health indicators such as life expectancy, infant mortality and immunization rates. Moreover, the other advanced nations provide comprehensive coverage to their entire populations, while the U.S. leaves 46.3 million completely uninsured and millions more inadequately covered ... Single-payer financing is the only way to recapture this wasted money. The potential savings on paperwork, more than $350 billion per year, are enough to provide comprehensive coverage to everyone without paying any more than we already do. [Do you believe that Single Payer would increase or decrease healthcare costs]
Thank you PNHP
or this:
Fact One: The United States spends at least 40% more per capita on health care than any other industrialized country with universal health care
Fact Two: Federal studies by the Congressional Budget Office and the General Accounting office show that single payer universal health care would save 100 to 200 Billion dollars per year despite covering all the uninsured and increasing health care benefits.
Fact Three: State studies by Massachusetts and Connecticut have shown that single payer universal health care would save 1 to 2 Billion dollars per year from the total medical expenses in those states despite covering all the uninsured and increasing health care benefits
Fact Four: The costs of health care in Canada as a % of GNP, which were identical to the United States when Canada changed to a single payer, universal health care system in 1971, have increased at a rate much lower than the United States, despite the US economy being much stronger than Canada’s.
Conclusion: Single payer universal health care costs would be lower than the current US system due to lower administrative costs. The United States spends 50 to 100% more on administration than single payer systems. By lowering these administrative costs the United States would have the ability to provide universal health care, without managed care, increase benefits and still save money. [Do you Believe that Single Payer Would cost more or less?]
Thanks to Connecticut Coalition for Universal Health Care
Finally, Raspublican asks:
"3* Would a single payer healthcare system lead to higher quality healthcare, lower quality healthcare or would the quality of healthcare remain about the same?
16% Higher quality healthcare
55% Lower quality healthcare
25% Quality of healthcare would remain about the same
4% Not sure"
Again, they never ask WHY most Americans feel the way they do, but what if they'd said:
All Americans would receive comprehensive medical benefits under single-payer. Coverage would include all medically necessary services, including rehabilitative, long-term, and home care; mental healthcare, prescription drugs, and medical supplies; and preventive and public health measures.
Care would be based on need, not on ability to pay ... Each person, regardless of ability to pay would receive high-quality, comprehensive medical care, and the free choice of doctors and hospitals. Individuals would receive no bills, and copayment and deductibles would be eliminated. Most people would pay less overall for health care than they pay now. [Do you believe that this system would benefit or hurt most Americans?]
thanks Healthcare-NOW!
Of course Rasmusen has no interest in fairness or American healthcare - they have their Republican masters to please thus they're ALWAYS the (negative)outlier on polls regarding Obama, helathcare, global warming - or ANY issue favored by the left and despised by the right. You can count on Rasmussen to push the party line EVERY TIME - so I'd suggest they're polls are worth very little in determining the true mindset of the American citizen regarding healthcare. But the media and laps up Ratmussen polls, so I thought it valuable to explore...