Americans Still Oppose ObamaCare Law, Individual Mandate

National   |   Steven Ertelt   |   Dec 27, 2010   |   1:21PM   |   Washington, DC

Two new national polls released today show Americans still strongly oppose the ObamaCare law that contains abortion-funding and rationing. They also oppose the individual mandate requirement making them purchase health care.

The latest Rasmussen Reports national telephone survey shows 60 percent of likely voters at least somewhat favor repeal of the national health care law, while the number who expect health care costs to increase is at its highest level since August.

The 60 percent who favor repeal, with 49 percent strongly favoring repeal, is tied for the second highest level of opposition in the Rasmussen poll since August. Just 38 percent oppose the law’s repeal, including 29% who strongly oppose it.

Support for repeal has ranged from 50% to 63% in weekly tracking since the bill became law in late March. Last week, support for repeal was at 55% but last week also marked the first time a majority of voters believe the measure is likely to be repealed.

Meanwhile, a new national poll conducted by CNN finds a majority of the public still opposes the new law and the component requiring all Americans to buy insurance, which several lawsuits in federal court are currently challenging.

The CNN poll shows 60 percent oppose the requirement that all Americans get health insurance, with 38 percent saying they favor the provision.

“Among Democrats, 54 percent favor the insurance requirement, but more than six in ten Independents and Republicans oppose it,” says CNN Polling Director Keating Holland. “Women are more likely than men to support that provision, but even among women, 53 percent oppose it.”

Overall, 54 percent oppose the law with 43 percent favoring the measure.

In a ruling earlier this month a federal district court judge in Virginia struck down the individual mandate provision, finding Congress had overreached in imposing the insurance requirement. A federal judge in Florida appears to be ready to follow suit after holding a hearing on the lawsuit the state and more than 20 others filed.

In the new Rasmussen poll, 61 percent of voters nationwide believe the law will cause health care costs to go up, which ties the highest level measured on the question since the bill was passed. Only 17% now expect costs to go down while the same number (17%) says costs will stay about the same.

Just over half (53%) say the quality of health care will decrease under the new law, consistent with findings since March. Twenty-two percent (22%) expect health care quality to decrease under the law, while 21% say it will stay about the same.

The poll come out on the heels of a new report on the Obama administration issuing new regulations adding death panels to the law.

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.

Under the new health care law, states will be in charge of their own health care exchanges that are available for individuals and small businesses.

The exchange doesn’t go into effect until 2014 and states are filing lawsuits seeking to stop the pro-abortion health care bill in its other pro-abortion provisions entirety, but states are moving now to exercise their right to opt out of some of the abortion funding.