Majority of U.S. Residents Believes Obama Should Seek Major Changes to Health Care System, Poll Finds
A majority of U.S. adults believe that President-elect Barack Obama should make major reforms to the health care system, according to a recent Washington Post-ABC News Poll, the Post reports (Cohen/Agiesta, Washington Post, 12/21). The poll, conducted by telephone between Dec. 11 and Dec. 14, included responses from a random sample of 1,003 adults. The poll has a margin of error of plus or minus three percentage points.
Seventy-seven percent of adults believe that Obama should make major reforms to the health care system, compared with 20% who said he should not, the poll found. Of those supporting major reforms, 51% of adults believe that Obama should seek them immediately after he takes office, and 26% believe that he should wait until later in his presidency, according to the poll. Sixty-eight percent of adults believe that Obama will have the ability to make major reforms to the health care system, compared with 28% who believe that he will not have the ability, the poll found.
Almost three-fourths of adults believe that Obama should increase federal funds for health insurance for children, compared with 23% who believe that he should not. Of those supporting increased federal funding for children's health insurance, half believe that he should address the issue immediately, compared with 24% who believe that he should wait, according to the poll. In addition, 52% percent of adults believe that Obama should increase federal funds for embryonic stem cell research, compared with 42% who believe that he should not, the poll found (Washington Post graphic, 12/21).
Cabinet
Most of the individuals whom Obama has nominated for Cabinet positions are "known more for pragmatism than for strong leanings on the issues they will oversee," but he has "signaled more ambitious plans with his picks" for health care and energy, the Post reports (MacGillis, Washington Post, 12/20). According to the Chicago Tribune, the nomination of former Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle (D-S.D.) as HHS secretary indicates that Obama is "intent on avoiding the mistakes of the last major attempt to improve health care" under former President Clinton, as Daschle is "less likely to repeat" those mistakes (Nicholas/Tankersley, Chicago Tribune, 12/21).
Obama senior adviser David Axelrod said that issues such as health care and energy "are so fundamental to our ability to right the economy in the long term that he knows he's going to have to drive a lot of that," adding that Obama "wants a high-powered staff in the White House to help him do that" (Baker, New York Times, 12/20).
