Poll: Opposition to health reform declines; Seniors view new law more negatively than adults overall

The Washington Post: "Opposition to the landmark health care overhaul declined over the past month, to 35 percent from 41 percent, according to the latest results of a tracking poll, reported Thursday. Fifty percent of the public held a favorable view of the law, up slightly from 48 percent a month ago, while 14 percent expressed no opinion about the measure, according to the poll by the Kaiser Family Foundation. The approval level was the highest for the legislation since it was enacted in March, after a divisive year-long debate. In April, the poll found 46 percent in favor and 40 percent opposed" (Hilzenrath, 7/29).

Kaiser Health News: "Seniors, a key target of both political parties this election season, tend to view the new health law more negatively than adults overall; however, they also are unaware of many of the Medicare provisions in the overhaul and have been left with erroneous perceptions by the bitter legislative debate, according to the survey, which was released today. About 38 percent say they support the law, while 46 percent of seniors view it unfavorably -- a drop of 10 points since April" (Verdon, 7/29).

---

This article was reprinted from khn.org with permission from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation. Kaiser Health News, an editorially independent news service, is a program of the Kaiser Family Foundation, a nonpartisan health care policy research organization unaffiliated with Kaiser Permanente.