Voters Oppose Taxing Health Insurance Plans
As Congress deliberates over how to fund health insurance reform, new polling, commissioned by the Communications Workers of America and conducted by Anzalone Liszt Research, finds that voters overwhelmingly oppose taxing high-cost health insurance plans as a way to help fund health insurance reform, but support raising taxes on the wealthy to accomplish the same goal. The Anzalone poll surveyed 2,200 likely voters in 10 states including seven with 2010 frontline Senate races (Arkansas, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, Louisiana, Nevada and North Dakota). Also polled were Indiana, New Mexico and Virginia.
Support for taxing high-cost insurance plans would have electoral implications as well, as over 60% of voters say that it would make them less likely to re-elect their member of Congress in 2010. This strong opposition to an excise tax on health insurance plans spans all regions, as well as all seven of the states surveyed that will have frontline Senate races in 2010.
The Senate health care bill would raise $150 billion over 10 years by assessing a 40 percent excise tax on the value of health care plans that exceed a certain level of spending. The House bill raises $460 billion over 10 years by assessing a surtax on the incomes of wealthy Americans. Choosing between these two options will be a major focus of a House-Senate conference on the bills.