ObamaCare Opposition Hits New High; Nearly 10% Report Work Hours Impact
Opposition to ObamaCare hit new highs just as it officially gets off the ground, according to the latest IBD/TIPP poll. The survey found 54% oppose the law, up from 50% in September and 47% in July. More than half want the law delayed a year as part of any deal to raise the debt limit.
The survey also found that ObamaCare is having a real and negative impact on jobs.
Nearly one in 10 said that either they or someone in their household has had their hours cut back because of ObamaCare. That translates into as many as 9 million people. Meanwhile, 6% say they or another household member has lost a job because of ObamaCare. In other words, the health law is responsible for as many as 7 million lost jobs.
The survey's findings come as a rash of insurance exchange glitches spoiled ObamaCare's official launch, and as the debate in Washington over delaying or defunding the law has caused a partial government shutdown.
Not only has ObamaCare disapproval increased, the intensity of opposition also has stepped up. The latest poll shows 42% strongly oppose the law, up from 37% a month ago. Just 25% strongly support it.
More troubling for backers is that independents have decidedly turned against the law. Nearly two-thirds (64%) of independents now oppose ObamaCare, up from 50% in August. Just 30% say they back the law, down from 40% in August.
The survey also found that, despite the one-year delay in the employer mandate, ObamaCare is clearly having an impact on jobs. President Obama claimed in late September that there's "no widespread evidence that the Affordable Care Act is hurting jobs.
But the IBD/TIPP poll suggests millions of households have lost jobs or had hours cut due to ObamaCare, particularly low-income, less educated households.
While 6% of all those surveyed said they or someone in their household had been laid off due to ObamaCare, 9% of households with less than $30,000 in income and 12% with only high school educations reported ObamaCare-caused lost jobs.
Overall, 8% reported having hours cut, but 11% of those with low-paying jobs said they had their hours cut to fewer than 30 a week. (The ObamaCare employer mandate kicks in at 30 hours.) These findings support IBD's own reporting, which has found a growing list of companies and governments that have specifically cited ObamaCare as the reason they've cut jobs or hours.
In addition, more than half (51%) of those surveyed say Congress should delay ObamaCare a year as part of any debt limit deal.
But just 41% support defunding the law, with 48% opposed.
The poll was taken Sept. 28-Oct. 2, just as ObamaCare enrollment began Oct. 1 with key technical woes and few people signing up.
Visitors on the federal site — HealthCare.gov — continued to get error messages on Thursday.
California first claimed that 5.7 million visited its exchange site on the first day, which officials said was the main reason for the technical woes. But it turns out less than 700,000 visited the site.
Whatever the true traffic numbers, few appear to be signing up for ObamaCare coverage so far.
Less than 0.5% of those visiting Connecticut's exchange filled out an application. In Louisiana, Blue Cross & Blue Shield said no one had signed up for their plans on opening day. The number who'd signed up in the federal exchange was in the "single digits," one industry official told the Washington Post.
