http://connect.kff.org/after-the-election-the-public-remains-sharply-divided-on-future-of-the-affordable-care-act?ecid=ACsprvtkG7thn0KvqmasXGGSnW1I2ovnfcZhoigDXi-aw9Wa_OhWGcyqpjasxqgfF_XFOsbs0N1f&utm_campaign=KFF-2016-November-Tracking-Poll&utm_source=hs_email&utm_medium=email&utm_content=38490459&_hsenc=p2ANqtz–qXSbCJ4pmKneag47QgP5kargBeYht5Al3rljRS8wEAQj-n-71yE8rwo5xn_Bg9Nwp-C89R9o_HVKBqqv5G6aMyddn9g&_hsmi=38490459

Among Those Who Favor Repeal, Arguments About Loss of Coverage for Those with Pre-Exiting Conditions Can Sway Some Opinions

Many Obamacare Provisions Remain Broadly Popular Across Party Lines, But Not its Mandate

The first Kaiser Health Tracking Poll since the 2016 election finds that Americans are largely divided on the future of the Affordable Care Act even though many of the law’s major provisions remain quite popular across party lines.

The new survey finds that one fourth (26%) of Americans want to see President-elect Donald Trump and the next Congress repeal the entire law, and an additional 17 percent want them to scale back what the law does. This compares to 30 percent of the public who want to see the law expanded and 19 percent who want to see lawmakers move forward with implementing the law as it is.

The poll captures a slight uptick in the share of Americans who want lawmakers to scale back the law as well as a decrease in the share who want lawmakers to repeal the entire law.  This is largely driven by Republicans: About half (52%) of Republicans now say they want to see the Affordable Care Act repealed, down from 69 percent in October. At the same time, a quarter (24%) of Republicans now want to see the law scaled back, up from 11 percent in October.

Among the quarter (26%) of Americans that want to see the Affordable Care Act repealed, 31 percent want to see the health care law just repealed and not replaced. About two-thirds wants lawmakers to repeal the health care law and replace it with a Republican-sponsored alternative, with 42 percent wanting lawmakers to wait to repeal it until the details of a replacement plan have been figured out and 21 percent wanting lawmakers to repeal it immediately and figure out a replacement plan later.

Among those who want the law repealed, 38 percent (or 10% of the public overall) change their opinion after hearing the argument that repealing the ACA would mean that insurance companies could deny coverage to people with pre-existing conditions. A slightly smaller share change their opinion after hearing that more than 20 million Americans could lose their coverage.