New Poll Out Today is Latest to Show Health Care is a Top Issue to Voters
New Ad Up on TV Today Reminds Voters That Deeply Unpopular GOP Health Care Sabotage Continues, Urges Them to #RememberinNovember
GOP Accountability Events Scheduled Coast to Coast
Washington, DC – One year ago this week, a bipartisan majority in the United States Senate gave thumbs down to President Trump’s top legislative priority, repealing the Affordable Care Act.
On the one year anniversary, health care is the number issues on voters’ minds, support for the law is higher than ever, and the American people want the Republican war on health care to end. To mark this anniversary:
- Public Policy Polling conducted a new poll showing voters will support a generic Democratic candidate who wants to keep and improve the Affordable Care Act by 14 points (56% to 40%) over a generic Republican candidate who wants to repeal it.
- Protect Our Care went up on TV today with a new ad reminding voters that the GOP campaign to sabotage health care and raise costs is alive and well.
- The Protect Our Care coalition will also be holding events in DC and 14 states throughout the week.
Over the course of the year, President Trump has sadly not abandoned his quest for health care repeal. Instead, he’s launched a year long campaign to sabotage it. While health care remains a top issue to Americans, they are facing significantly higher premiums due to Republican sabotage, President Trump has gone to court to strike down health care protections like those for people with pre-existing conditions and is now trying to install a Supreme Court Justice who could agree with him.
“The stinging defeat of ACA repeal in the Senate may be one of the most irritating moments of Donald Trump’s presidency, but a year later it remains one of the most important moments to the American people. Americans want their elected officials to protect their health care, which means standing up to the sabotage that’s raising health care costs and rejecting the nomination of a justice who is likely to rubber stamp the GOP’s lawsuit to strike down protections for people with pre-existing conditions,” said Leslie Dach, chair of Protect Our Care.
The new Public Policy Polling (PPP) survey shows that:
- A majority of voters (56 percent) will support candidates for Congress who want to improve, rather than repeal, the ACA;
- Nearly two-thirds of voters oppose the Trump administration joining the Republican lawsuit working to strike down protections for people with pre-existing conditions, and
- By double-digit margins, voters (55/42 percent) — especially women (60/34 percent) and independents (57/35 percent) — trust Democrats over Republicans on health care.
Watch Protect Our Care’s new ad:
ADDITIONAL BACKGROUND
A Year Later, Health Care is the Top Issue to Voters, and May be the Issue that Most Influences the Midterm Elections
- A new Protect Our Care-PPP poll released today found voters will support candidates who want to improve the ACA, rather than repeal it, and strongly oppose the Trump administration going to court to overturn protections for people with pre-existing conditions.
- In June, the Kaiser Family Foundation tracking poll found health care to be the top issue for voters, ranked higher than all issues, including the economy and jobs.
- A June NBC News poll found health care to be top midterm issue.
- A May CBS News poll, voters said health care is the most important issue in deciding who to vote for Congress in November.
- A year ago, ACA repeal bills were among the least popular pieces of major legislation in history. When the House was considering the “American Health Care Act,” (AHCA) polls at the time showed it the most unpopular piece of major legislation Congress had considered in decades. Then, the so-called Graham-Cassidy repeal bill had a 24 percent approval, even more unpopular than the AHCA.
GOP Sabotage Has Continued Despite Repeal Defeat, and Has Caused Double Digit Premium Increases
- Last year, Republican sabotage pushed 2018 insurance premiums up by a national average of 37 percent and this year GOP sabotage has resulted in 2019 premium increases in all but two states where the data is available.
- After they failed to repeal the ACA, Republicans gave tens of billions of dollars in tax cuts to insurance companies and pharmaceutical companies.
- View a comprehensive list of acts of health care sabotage here.
Don’t Forget: All Four Major Senate Repeal Bills Would Have Eliminated Protections For People With Pre-Existing Conditions, Cut Coverage And Raised Costs
- Better Care Reconciliation Act, defeated 43-57 on July 25, 2017
- Repeal and Delay, defeated 45-55 on July 26, 2017
- Skinny Repeal, defeated 49-51 July 28, 2017
- Graham-Cassidy, pending a vote