Polls suggest Americans concerned about major health system overhaul

Although there is rising dissatisfaction among Americans with the U.S. health care system, polls show that most also have a positive view of their own insurance coverage and quality of care. This tension has fueled the ongoing debate about whether or not to eliminate private health insurance in favor of a single-payer, government-run system like Medicare for All.

In a December 19, 2019 article in FiveThirtyEight, pollster Robert Blendon of Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health discussed Americans’ conflicting views—they want the health system to work better overall, but they don’t want health care they’re personally satisfied with to be changed.

Blendon, Richard L. Menschel Professor of Public Health and Professor of Health Policy and Political Analysis, told FiveThirtyEight that pushing for Medicare for All in the general election could be a liability for a Democratic candidate. “I just don’t think the candidates for Medicare for All did their homework,” he said. “Even Medicare isn’t a single-payer plan. Many Americans just like the idea of having a choice.”

He added, “People might not love the insurance companies, but do they really trust Congress more? Some people want another option, in case they don’t like the government’s plan.”

Read the FiveThirtyEight article: Americans Want The Health Care System To Change. Just Not Their Own Health Care.