Poll: Most say health care needs change

Keren Rivas

Nov. 3, 2009 (McClatchy-Tribune Regional News delivered by Newstex) -- Most North Carolinians agree that the current health care system needs to be changed but are at odds when it comes to how to do it, according to an Elon University Poll released Monday.

The poll, which was conducted Oct. 26-29, asked the opinions of 703 North Carolina residents. Of that number, 76.6 percent said they think the health system is in need of reform, while 16.4 percent said it is fine the way it was.

However, when asked whether the system needs to stay the same, with the vast majority of people having private health insurance, or changed to a universal health program, where everyone is covered under a government-run system, 45.6 percent opted for the first choice while 41.1 percent chose for the second.

Likewise, their support of a national insurance plan, where the government would pay for most medical and hospital costs for all citizens, was evenly split, with 46.6 percent saying they were against such plan and 47.4 percent saying they were in favor.

Having a national insurance plan would have a negative impact on their personal situation, 45.4 percent of the participants said, while 35.4 percent said it would have a positive impact. An additional 19 percent said they don't know what kind of effect it would have or didn't think it was going to affect them one way or the other.

The idea of having a public option as part of any health insurance legislation reform seemed to be the preferred solution for those polled, with 54.1 percent in support of it and 37.9 percent against. If such an option was available, 41.1 percent said they would use it while 43.3 percent said they wouldn't.

The poll also revealed that the number of residents who have some form of private health care coverage has dropped in the past 13 months. While 83 percent of respondents in a September 2008 poll said they had private insurance, in the most recent poll, just 73 percent reported the same.

WHEN IT COMES to the economy, most residents remained pessimistic.

Overall, 40.6 percent said they believed the economy has leveled off but has not improved, while 35.8 percent said the worst was yet to come. Asked how they expected the economy to be for the remainder of the year, 44.7 percent said it will stay the same, 36 percent it will get worse and 18.6 percent said it will get better.

Three quarters of the poll participants, or 76 percent, said the economy has affected them personally, with about the same number (73.3 percent) saying their personal situation was going to stay the same or get worse by the end of the year.

The areas in which people said the economy has had a negative impact was their investment in the stock market (46.6 percent), home value (41 percent), retirement plan (37.8 percent) and work (31.8 percent said they've had hours reduced at work while 20 percent said they have lost their job).

Having trouble making mortgage payments (20.3 percent) and losing medical coverage (18.4 percent) were also other ways people said the economy has affected them.

The polls have a margin of error of plus or minus 3.8 percentage points. The sample is of the population in general, with numbers that include both landlines and cellular phones.

For more detailed information about this or past polls, visit the Elon Poll's Web site at http://www.elon.edu/e-web/ elonpoll/

Newstex ID: KRTB-0029-39400866