Residents of Healthcare.gov states don't want their own exchanges
The majority of voters in the 34 states using Healthcare.gov do not want to see state exchanges if the Supreme Court ruling in King v. Burwell says that the federal exchange cannot sell subsidized plans, according to a recent poll by the Foundation for Government Accountability.
If the Court sides with the plaintiffs in the case, 63 percent of the 1,564 voters polled said that Congress should make changes to the Affordable Care Act, while only 22 percent said that states should establish their own exchanges.
When it comes to assigning blame in the event that the Court rules that subsidies are illegal, 46 percent of those polled point to Congress, while 22 percent fault the Internal Revenue Service for overstepping its authority. Only 20 percent say states should have established exchanges in the first place.
Those polled are more likely to say that the ACA has made no difference to their family (44 percent) or hurt their family (37 percent) than helped their family (17 percent). A separate Kaiser Health Tracking poll found a shrinking gap between those who oppose and favor the law, FierceHealthPayer previously reported, though more Americans oppose the law than favor it.
Some believe a ruling against the federal subsidies in King v. Burwell would cause a "death spiral" in the health insurance industry, with more than 9 million Americans no longer able to afford coverage and premiums rising as much as 47 percent for those who still can.
If that does happen, voters say they "want major changes that improve the law for everyone," as the Foundation for Government Accountability put it. This is true among Democrats, Republicans and split-ticket voters.
Those polled support the return of grandfathered health plans that do not comply with the ACA; the ability to purchase plans throughout the year, not just during open enrollment, and tax subsidies for all types of health plans, not just those sold on health insurance exchanges.
For more:
- read the poll results (.pdf)
Related Articles:
King v. Burwell Supreme Court case: What you need to know [Special Report]
Beyond King v. Burwell: Payers brace for 'death spiral'
Poll: Gap narrows between favorable and unfavorable views of ACA
Briefs: King v. Burwell ruling against subsidies would be 'devastating'
Comments