49% Support State Lawsuits Against Health Care Plan
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Forty-nine percent (49%) of U.S. voters favor their state suing the federal government to fight the requirement in the new national health care plan that every American must obtain health insurance.
A new Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey of likely voters finds that 37% disagree and oppose their state suing to challenge that requirement. Fourteen percent (14%) are undecided.
A number of states, including Texas, Pennsylvania, Virginia and Washington, have already announced plans to sue the government over what they view as an unconstitutional requirement that every American buy or obtain health insurance. President Obama is expected to sign the health care plan into law today after the House on Sunday by a 219-212 vote approved the Senate version of the legislation.
Seventy-two percent (72%) of Republicans and 58% of voters not affiliated with either major party favor such lawsuits. Sixty-five percent (65%) of Democrats are opposed. This suggests that filing a suit would be popular in Republican leaning and toss-up states but not in strong Democratic states. Of course, as with all things in the world of politics, these realities could shift over time as both parties try to spin the recently-passed legislation.
The gap over suing the federal government is even wider between Mainstream Americans and the
Political Class. Sixty-two percent (62%) of Mainstream voters think state lawsuits challenging the federal requirement are a good idea. Seventy-nine percent (79%) of the Political Class disagree.
Most voters (53%) oppose a provision in the new health care law that requires every American to buy or obtain health insurance. Just 42% favor it. These findings include 42% who are Strongly Opposed and 25% who Strongly in Favor.
Fifty-one percent (51%) of voters say
individual states should have the right to opt out of the entire health care plan, roughly unchanged from just before the House vote. Thirty-four percent (34%) say states should not have the power to opt out, but 16% more are not sure.
Fifty percent (50%) also believe states should have the right to opt out of portions of the plan they disagree with. Thirty-three percent (33%) are opposed to even this limited opting-out. Seventeen percent (17%) aren’t sure.
In a survey just before the House vote, 41% of all voters nationally favored the overall health care plan, while
54% opposed it. These figures have changed very little for months.
Most voters still believe
cost, not the lack of universal coverage, is the biggest problem with health care in America today, but most also think passage of the health care plan will drive costs even higher.
A sizable majority of Republicans and most unaffiliated voters think states should have the right to opt out of some or all of the health care plan passed by Congress. Most Democrats oppose opting-out in any fashion.
More than 80% of the Political Class is opposed to allowing states to opt out of any part of the health care plan. Over 60% of mainstream voters favor opting-out.
Forty-three percent (43%) of Americans expect the
cost of prescription drugs to go up if the health care plan becomes law. Only 23% think the cost of prescription drugs will go down, while 17% expect drug costs to stay about the same.
The Congressional Budget Office says the president’s health care plan will reduce the deficit over 10-years’ time, but voters are skeptical of the official government projections.
Eighty-one percent (81%) believe the health care plan will cost more than projected.Voters overwhelmingly believe passage of the plan will increase the deficit and is likely to mean higher middle class taxes.
Fifty-seven percent (57%) of voters say passage of the health care plan will
hurt the U.S. economy.
That’s one reason why 50% say they are
less likely to vote this November to reelect a member of Congress who votes for the health care plan.
Just 11% of voters rate Congress’ performance as good or excellent in a survey taken right before the House vote. Sixty-four percent (64%) say Congress is doing a poor job.
http://www.rasmussenreports.com/publ...alth_care_plan