I launched the Anti-Universal Coverage Club on the Cato@Liberty blog in 2007. The Club is “a list of scholars and citizens who reject the idea that government should ensure that all individuals have health insurance.”
Well, that list just got longer. A whole lot longer. I’ll let the folks at Gallup take it from here:
In U.S., Majority Now Against Gov’t Healthcare Guarantee
For the first time in Gallup trends since 2000, a majority of Americans say it is not the federal government’s responsibility to make sure all Americans have healthcare coverage. Prior to 2009, a majority always felt the government should ensure healthcare coverage for all, though Americans’ views have become more divided in recent years…
The shift away from the view that the government should ensure healthcare coverage for all began shortly after President Barack Obama’s election and has continued the past several years during the discussions and ultimate passage of the Affordable Care Act in March 2010.
The split is 54-44 percent, well outside the poll’s margin of error. Below the jump are the results in chart form:
Now all we need is for 54 percent of the public to “like” the Anti-Universal Coverage Club’s Facebook page.
The shift was bipartisan:
Republicans, including Republican-leaning independents, are mostly responsible for the drop since 2007 in Americans’ support for government ensuring universal health coverage. In 2007, 38% of Republicans thought the government should do so; now, 12% do. Among Democrats and Democratic leaners there has been a much smaller drop, from 81% saying the government should make sure all Americans are covered in 2007 to 71% now.
Yet another indication that ObamaCare remains quite vulnerable.