Obama Admin Purchases Google Ads to Promote ObamaCare

National   |   Steven Ertelt   |   Dec 17, 2010   |   1:46PM   |   Washington, DC

Forced to contend with the unpopularity of the ObamaCare health care law that fails to prohibit abortion funding, the Obama Administration has been forced to purchase Google ads to promote it.

The U.S. Department of Health and Human Services is purchasing keyword ads on Google using the infamous ObamaCare description pro-life and conservative opponents of the law have use to tie it to President Barack Obama.

The page the ads lead to will instruct viewers how to obtain more information about making health care changes but also feature a “what’s in the law for you” section, according to Politico, that plays up what Obama officials hope will persuade Americans the law is good for them.

“We are using a bunch of search term[s] to help point people to HealthCare.gov. Part of our online efforts to help get accurate information to people about the new law (i.e. also use Facebook, Twitter, blogs and webcasts),” an HHS official said, Politico reported.

The ads are a clear recognition that polling data shows ObamaCare is significantly unpopular with the American people.

A new ABC News/Washington Post poll found support for the ObamaCare law at its lowest levels ever.

Support for ObamaCare peaked at 48 percent in November 2009 and now stands at just 43 percent with 52 percent of Americans opposing it. The nine point percentage on the opposition side is also the biggest gap in the poll since the health care debate began in earnest last summer.

More Americans also continue to strongly oppose the health care program than strongly support it — by a 37 to 22 percent margin.

Also, a new Rasmussen Reports survey shows most voters have favored repeal of the law every week since it was passed and support for repeal has now inched up to its highest level since mid-September.

The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows that 60% of likely voters at least somewhat favor repeal of the health care law while 34% are opposed. As has been the case since the law was first passed, those who favor repeal feel more passionately than those who want to keep the law–46% Strongly Favor repeal while just 23% who are Strongly Opposed.

Total support for repeal is up four points from a week ago but consistent with opposition to the law for months. Support for repeal has ranged from 50% to 63% in weekly tracking since Democrats in Congress passed the law in late March.

The “Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act” establishes health insurance exchanges in each state. Insurance policies marketed through those plans benefit from federal subsidies.

Individuals of low-to-moderate income are eligible to receive refundable tax credits and cost-sharing reductions which they may use to purchase abortion coverage.

When Congress passed the government-run health care bill, it did so without any limits on abortion funding and language mandating taxpayer financing of abortion in certain circumstances.

Obama eventually issued a controversial executive order supposedly taking the abortion funding issue off the table.

However, virtually every pro-life group said it would not mitigate the abortion funding because it doesn’t have the effect of law, could be reversed in the future, and because it didn’t tackle much of the abortion funding in the bill. The Obama administration could also ignore the order and not put it in place when the health care law goes into effect.