Roughly two-thirds of Americans say the federal government should ensure that everyone has health care coverage, according to a new Pew Research survey.
Americans, however, are split on how the government should achieve it.
Most Americans support health care for all
By the numbers:
According to the poll, 35% of the 10,357 adults surveyed favor a single-payer system run by the federal government, while 31% say health insurance should be covered through a mix of private companies and government programs.
Of those surveyed, 33% say health care is not the federal government’s responsibility, but most people who believe that say the government should continue Medicare and Medicaid coverage for seniors and the very poor.
Only 7% of respondents said the federal government should not provide health insurance at all.
Why you should care:
The survey comes as more than 22 million Americans brace for significantly higher health care costs next year. The U.S. Senate failed last week to extend the Affordable Care Act (or Obamacare) subsidies set to expire in January.
RELATED: Senate blocks ACA subsidies extension: What this means for your health insurance
According to KFF, a major health care policy research organization, health care premiums are expected to increase an average of 114% without the tax credits.
About 25% of people who get their health insurance through the ACA Marketplace say they’ll likely go uninsured without the subsidies, a recent KFF survey found.
The politics of health care
Dig deeper:
A majority of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents (59%) say the federal government is not responsible for providing health coverage for all, while 41% of Republicans say it is. The share of Republicans who believe the government should provide health care is 9 percentage points higher than in 2021.
The number of Republicans who believe the government should provide health care is higher among those with lower incomes (60%), including 27% who say there should be a single-payer system.
Meanwhile, the vast majority (90%) of Democrats and Democratic leaners say the government has a responsibility to ensure coverage. More than half of Democrats (52%) say there should be a national insurance program, while 37% prefer the current mix of private insurance and public programs. Most Democrats at all income levels believe the federal government should provide health coverage for all.
What’s next:
According to Politico, the House is expected to vote on ACA tax credit extensions this week, but the vote will likely fail as it did in the Senate.
Reposted from Fox
