The Kaiser Family Foundation's September
tracking poll is out, showing a deeply cynical and pessimistic electorate, as well as ongoing confusion about what the Affordable Care Act does. The highlights:
- Most Americans express doubt that the congressional super committee can find the right solutions for dealing with the country’s finances. More than six in ten (62%) say they trust the super committee "just a little" (34%) or "not at all" (28%) to "make the right recommendations about ways to reduce the federal budget deficit," while only 5 percent say they trust the group "a great deal."
- Fifty-two percent of Americans say that they or someone else in their household has what would be considered a "pre-existing condition." Among this group, one in five (21%) say they or their family member has had difficulty at some point getting health insurance because of a pre-existing condition, including 14 percent who say they were denied coverage because of the condition.
- Americans' opinions of the health reform law remain divided this month, much as they have since the law was passed. In September, 41 percent say they have a favorable view of the law, while 43 percent have an unfavorable view.
Some of the pessimism toward the Super Congress could be a public more concerned about jobs and the economy than the deficit—the Super Congress's organizing principle—or it could be the frustration with what they are hearing about potential cuts. From the poll findings [PDF]:
Americans continue to resist spending cuts to major public programs as a way to reduce the deficit. When asked about specific areas where the super committee might recommend cuts, more than half the public says they would not support any reductions to spending on Social Security (58 percent) or Medicare (51 percent). Almost half (46 percent) say the same about Medicaid, while 36 percent would support minor reductions and just 16 percent want major reductions in Medicaid spending. The public’s resistance to cutting these three central entitlement programs has persisted over recent months and continues in the context of the super committee, despite the continuing focus on the need for debt reduction and heavy news media coverage of the committee’s charge.
They're not liking what they're hearing from Washington, D.C. apparently.
The other key finding this month was the persistent misunderstanding in the public of the Affordable Care Act, and specifically how it will help people with preexisting conditions. While 52 percent of Americans say they or someone in their household has a preexisting condition, a fifth of those people say they've had difficulty getting insurance, and 14 percent of that group says they have been denied insurance. Yet only 44 percent of this group think that the law will make health conditions better for people with preexisting conditions while 27 percent think they would be worse off.
That could be one effect of one of the major drawbacks written into the legislation—the time lag until 2017 2014 when the majority of the law's provisions take effect. Between now and then, there will continue to be confusion and misinformation about what it does and does not do. It's also one of the primary messaging problems the Democrats have had in talking about the law.