Many Americans ignorant of ‘Obamacare’ challenge
Poll: Most people unaware of case in Supreme Court
WASHINGTON — With a decision due by summer in a Supreme Court case that could unravel President Barack Obama’s health care law, a new poll finds many Americans have heard nothing about the case.
But when the potential fallout is explained, most say it would hurt the country and they would look to Congress or the states to fix it.
Although recent oral arguments before the Supreme Court got national media attention, 53 percent said they were unfamiliar with the case, according to a Kaiser Family Foundation poll released Thursday.
Opponents of the law say its precise wording allows the government to subsidize coverage only in states that set up their own insurance markets, or exchanges. Most have not done so, defaulting to the federal HealthCare.gov.
When people were asked about the potential consequences of a Supreme Court ruling to deny financial assistance in states with federally-run insurance markets, 62 percent said that would have a negative impact on the country.
The Kaiser foundation is a nonpartisan information clearinghouse on health care issues. The poll is the latest installment in its survey series, which has tracked public opinion since the inception of Obama’s overhaul
Overall, it found Americans remain divided over the health care law, which offers subsidized private insurance to people who don’t have access to it on the job, plus expanded Medicaid coverage for lowincome adults in states that accept it.
Forty-three percent view it unfavorably, while 41 percent have a favorable opinion.
The Supreme Court case is known as King v. Burwell. Supporters of the law argue that while the wording of particular provisions may be confusing, the clear intent was to provide benefits in all states.
If the Supreme Court invalidates subsidies for people in some three-dozen federal marketplace states, most poll respondents (65 percent) said Congress should pass a law so residents of all states can get financial assistance.
But partisan divisions foreshadow problems. While 81 percent of Democrats and 67 percent of independents favored a congressional fix, 56 percent of Republicans opposed rescuing what detractors call “Obamacare.”
When people in the states potentially affected were asked how their governors and state legislators should respond, 69 percent said their states should create their own markets so residents could keep receiving help.
That view cut across party lines. If the court rules for the law’s opponents and against the Obama administration, “Democrats are likely to have the public on their side,” Altman said.