Voters trust Hillary Clinton over Donald Trump on healthcare, Kaiser survey finds
Healthcare affordability, the future of Medicare on top of mind as voters weigh healthcare issues ahead of the November election.
The future of Medicare and the overall affordability of healthcare are top of mind for Americans, according to a new poll by the Kaiser family Foundation, but when it comes to which presidential candidate they trust to navigate those issues, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton is widely favored over Donald Trump.
Among registered voters polled by Kaiser, 53 percent trust Clinton to do a better job on safeguarding Medicare as opposed to 38 percent who trust Trump. On the issue of healthcare affordability, 52 percent trust Clinton versus 39 percent who trust Trump to do a better job.
[Also: Hillary Clinton preferred by healthcare pros over Donald Trump, Aprima survey finds]
However, the gap widens when it comes to women's reproductive health, with 64 percent trusting Clinton to handle those issues versus 28 percent who trust Trump.
Americans are already increasingly stressed out about healthcare costs as health insurance deductibles rise, more employers only offer high-deductible plans, and the overall out-of-pocket expenses rise. The survey found 43 percent of respondents said they thought access to affordable health would worsen under a Trump presidency. However, the results were more even when asked whether the candidates would actually make affordability better, with 33 percent saying Clinton would improve the situation and 29 percent saying Trump would.
The survey also focused on Americans' opinions on the Zika outbreak, which has really hit home in August as cases have been confirmed in some areas of Florida.
According to the poll, 77 percent of respondents said they feel it would be unsafe for pregnant women to travel to areas where there have been confirmed Zika cases. And 76 percent said they feel Congress should prioritize funding programs to combat the outbreak.
Below are a few charts supplied by Kaiser that detail the findings of their poll:
On healthcare issues that are top of mind for voters
On how party affiliation affects how voters think the candidates will act on healthcare issues
Party affiliation affects how voters view progress on healthcare affordability
Republicans distrust media coverage of the Affordable Care Act
When it comes to Zika, not everyone is aware of travel restrictions
On the spread of Zika and how that affects travel attitudes
The poll also looked at how Americans view the digitization of health records
On how Americans view the importance of digital health records
On the growth of digital health records
With digitization comes concerns over privacy
Necessary or not? American's weigh in on digital access to records
Twitter: @HenryPowderly
Contact the author: henry.powderly@himssmedia.com
