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September 10, 2016
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With fewer than 10 weeks until the November general election, there
is no shortage of topics for the presidential candidates to discuss and
debate. On the health care front, the Kaiser Health Tracking Poll: August 2016
indicates that, though health-related concerns have largely taken a
backseat in media coverage, a number of these issues -- including HIV --
are priorities for voting Americans.
According to the survey, more voters trust Hillary Clinton than Donald Trump when it comes to health care concerns. Fifty-seven percent of those polled would trust her to do a better job when it comes to HIV/AIDS issues. Concerning HIV/AIDS, 63% of Republican voters trust Trump more than Clinton, while among Independents and Democrats, more voters trust Clinton (50% and 91%, respectively).
Overall, the highest percentage of people polled identified affordable health care and the future of Medicare as top priorities. About two-thirds of voters identified these topics as the most important health care issues for the presidential candidates.
When asked about how affordable health care might change if each of the presidential candidates were elected, 43% said it would get worse if Trump won, about 29% said it would improve and 25% said it would not change much one way or another. Twenty-seven percent of voters polled said that if Clinton were elected affordable health care would get worse, 33% said it would improve and 38% it wouldn't matter much either way. Among older adults -- Americans over the age of 65 -- 44% said they would trust Trump with the future of Medicare, while 47% said they'd trust Clinton.
When it comes to health record confidentiality, about half of voters polled were concerned that an unauthorized individual could gain access to their medical information. In spite of this concern, 80% were in favor of electronic health records. Most voters felt it's important to access their health information -- including laboratory test results, general health history, prescription medications, health care provider notes and treatment information -- online, but many people do not yet access their electronic health information.
Prescription drug costs were a top priority for 53% of those polled and an important, but not top, priority for an additional 33%. Only 3% identified prescription drug prices as not at all important.
Concerning the Affordable Care Act, 40% of American voters had a favorable opinion of the law and 42% had an unfavorable opinion. These opinions are largely partisan: More than two-thirds of Democrats reported a favorable view of the law and more than three-fourths of Republicans reported an unfavorable view. Among Independents, 37% had a favorable opinion and 47% had an unfavorable opinion.
According to the poll, the most closely followed health-related media stories in August 2016 were the Zika virus outbreak, the heroin and prescription opioid addiction epidemic, rising health insurance costs and news about health insurance providers withdrawing from the Affordable Care Act marketplace.
Copyright © 2016 Remedy Health Media, LLC. All rights reserved.
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