From Gallup
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- As the Affordable Care Act's second open
enrollment period begins, 37% of Americans say they approve of the law,
one percentage point below the previous low in January. Fifty-six
percent disapprove, the high in disapproval by one point.
Americans were slightly more positive than negative about the law
around the time of the 2012 election, but they have consistently been
more likely to disapprove than approve of the law in all surveys that
have been conducted since then. Approval has been in the low 40% or high
30% range after a noticeable dip that occurred in early November 2013.
This was shortly after millions of Americans received notices that their
current policies were being canceled, which was at odds with President
Barack Obama's pledge that those who liked their plans could keep them.
The president later said, by way of clarification, that Americans could
keep their plans if those plans didn't change after the ACA was passed.
The current 37% reading comes on the heels of last week's midterm
elections, in which Republicans won full control of both houses of
Congress. Already, party leaders are discussing efforts to repeal the
unpopular law.
Repeal is highly unlikely, given Obama's veto power, but the law's
new low in approval -- and new high in disapproval (56%) -- could
potentially have an impact on its future. The president himself has
acknowledged he will consider modifications to the law, which could
include repealing the tax on medical devices.
Approval Among Independents at 33%
Approval of the law continues to diverge sharply by party, with 74%
of Democrats and 8% of Republicans approving of it. Independents have
never been particularly positive toward the law, with approval ranging
between 31% and 41%. Currently, 33% of independents approve.
Nonwhites, who disproportionately identify as Democrats, have
maintained majority approval since the ACA's inception, now at 56%.
Though this is still about double the level of approval among whites
(29%), it is the first time nonwhites have fallen below the 60% mark.
Bottom Line
Americans have never been overly positive toward the ACA, at best
showing a roughly equal division between approval and disapproval early
on in the law's implementation. The percentage of Americans who approve
of the law represents a new numerical low, which could indicate a loss
of faith in the law amid the aftermath of the 2014 midterms. Although
the ACA, also called Obamacare, was not as dominant an issue in this
year's congressional elections as it was in 2010, the issue was part of
Republicans' campaign efforts to oppose the president's agenda overall.
In doing that, many of the party's candidates were successful.
Though the law's implementation suffered setbacks last fall,
government officials have greater optimism for the health insurance
website's usability this time around. Importantly, though, approval of
the law has remained low throughout the year even as it has had obvious success in reducing the uninsured rate.
And with approval holding in a fairly narrow range since last fall, it
may be that Americans have fairly well made up their minds about the
law, and even a highly successful second open enrollment period may not
do much to boost their approval.
Read more at Gallup >>
