WASHINGTON -- Republicans are increasingly worried that their decadelong push to repeal the Affordable Care Act will hurt them in the November elections, as coronavirus cases spike around the country and millions of Americans who have lost jobs during the pandemic lose their health coverage as well.The
WASHINGTON — Republicans are increasingly worried that their decadelong push to repeal the Affordable Care Act will hurt them in the November elections, as coronavirus cases spike around the country and millions of Americans who have lost jobs during the pandemic lose their health coverage as well.
Health care is consistently near the top of the list of issues voters care about. While Republicans and President Donald Trump tend to have an edge on the economy, Democrats won the House in 2018 in large part by emphasizing health care — a playbook they intend to revive in 2020. The pandemic has also put Republicans at risk of losing the Senate, said Jessica Taylor, who analyzes Senate races for the nonpartisan Cook Political Report.
The public has been deeply divided over the Affordable Care Act since it became law in March 2010, according to surveys by the Kaiser Family Foundation. But with people now worried that infection with COVID-19 will become a preexisting condition, Democrats say the health law — which requires insurers to cover such conditions — is becoming more attractive to voters.
The coronavirus has changed the national discussion around health care in ways that go beyond the issue of cost. The pandemic has exposed racial disparities in care, making health care a more important issue for African Americans and Latinos, core Democratic constituencies. And with Trump making dubious claims about health care — like suggesting people inject or drink bleach, and promoting an unproven malaria drug — Democrats are seeking to paint him and his party as ignorant on an important issue.
In a recent survey, Ayres asked swing-state voters how government should help workers who have recently lost insurance coverage. The poll found that 47% supported a major government expansion of health care, 31% believed the best option for laid-off workers was to go on Medicaid, and only 16% preferred federal subsidies for Affordable Care Act premiums.
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