The Missouri Foundation for Health suggests Missourians might not be as opposed to the federal healthcare overhaul law as some statewide votes might indicate.
Critics of what the Obama administration calls the Affordable Care Act say two statewide votes show Missourians oppose the law. Not so, says health policy analyst Thomas McAuliffe with the Missouri Foundation for Health. And he has a professionally-run survey that shows opposition is declining. He expects the trend to continue as people become more familiar with what the law does rather than what opponents say it does..
Two years ago a foundation poll showed 54 percent of Missourians opposed the law. The new survey shows opposition is down to 46 percent. Outright support is only 37 percent. But that’s up seven points in two years.
McAuliffe says last month’s vote prohibiting the governor from setting up a health insurance exchange does not mean Missourians oppose the idea. In fact, he says, Missourians support the exchanges when they’re told what the exchanges are all about. They just think the state should set up the exchange, not the federal government.
Here’s our entire interview with McAuliffe:
AUDIO: McAuliffe interview 10:58