Gingrich: New Poll Shows Scrap Healthcare Proposal

Americans Wants Approach That Contains Costs, Less Government Control

ATLANTA – A majority of voters reject comprehensive health reform as proposed by President Obama and Congressional Democrats and instead favor several, smaller bills to tackle healthcare issues, according to a new poll released by the Center for Health Transformation.

Newt Gingrich, founder of the Center, presented the findings of the poll conducted by Public Opinion Strategies at the Atlanta Press Club today. By a margin of 59 percent to 36 percent, voters said they would rather Congress and the President start over than proceed with comprehensive reform.

Meanwhile, by a 2-1 margin, voters strongly oppose the current health care plan in Congress. The Health Care Summit national poll was conducted Feb. 17-21.

“If this doesn’t speak loud and clear to the White House and Congress, I don’t know what does,” Gingrich said. “The answer to the current plan is a resounding no. Not maybe. Not sort of. Not perhaps. But absolutely not.”

In Washington, D.C. Thursday, President Obama and Congressional leaders will hold a one-day bi-partisan summit to discuss health reform. The President, however, already unveiled his comprehensive legislation Monday.

The CHT poll also found that the top priorities of voters concerning health reform are: making health care more affordable; and allowing physicians and patients to be in charge of their healthcare.

Support for the President’s efforts on health reform has collapsed since the town hall meetings last summer. In September 2009, 41 percent of those polled by Public Opinion Strategies said not to pass legislation, or just keep the current healthcare system. This month, that number rose to 50 percent.

“Americans want their voice heard when it comes to health reform,” said Nancy Desmond, President and CEO of the Center for Health Transformation. “They are calling for change that empowers them and their doctors, eliminates fraud, enacts civil justice reform and makes it easier to purchase their own health insurance. Congress just doesn’t hear them.”

The numbers who believe health care is not the role of the federal government also increased, according to the pollster, by 12 percent to 35 percent this month.

“The public doesn’t want a federal bureaucracy more involved in our personal healthcare decisions,” Desmond said. “The relationship between patient and doctor has to remain sacred.”

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