6 in 10 hold favorable view of Affordable Care Act in new polling

More than half of U.S. adults have a favorable view of the Affordable Care Act (ACA), as the health care measure used by millions of Americans continues to gain popularity, according to a poll released Wednesday. 

The survey, released by health policy research group KFF, found that 59 percent of U.S. adults had a favorable view of the ACA, though respondents differed along party lines on what they would like to see done with the law.

More than three-quarters of Democratic voters — 77 percent — want the next presidential administration and Congress to expand the law, while 39 percent of Republicans want it to be repealed and about 23 percent would like it to be scaled back, pollsters found. 

Nearly half, or 48 percent, of independent voters said they want the law to be expanded, and 18 percent said they hope it is kept as is. 

When it comes to the provisions of the health care law, protection for those with preexisting conditions came out as the most popular, the poll found. More than two-thirds, or 67 percent, of respondents across party lines said the provisions that prevent health insurance companies from denying coverage because of one’s medical history are “very important” to keep in the law. About 65 percent said it’s very important that the provision that prevents health insurance companies from charging sick people higher premiums remains in it. 

Knowledge about the law’s impact among the public is low, despite enrollment in the insurance marketplace it created hitting an all-time high last month. About a third — or 35 percent — of respondents correctly answered that the uninsured rate in the U.S. has decreased since the ACA passed in 2010, while 34 percent knew the latest enrollment period hit a record high.  

Opposition to the ACA, popularly known as “ObamaCare,” was once a central focus of Republicans’ political messaging, but after various failed attempts to repeal and replace the measure, the party has largely turned toward other policy issues. 

Former President Trump, who is currently the GOP presidential front-runner, revived his vow to replace ObamaCare with his own “much better” alternative late last year. 

“Obamacare is too expensive, and otherwise, not good healthcare,” Trump wrote in a post on his social media platform, Truth Social, in late December. 

Trump, to the surprise of several GOP lawmakers, had previously clarified in November that he does not want to “terminate” ObamaCare, but rather replace it with "much better” health care. 

GOP lawmakers at the time noted Trump’s proposal was unlikely to come to fruition, as there have not been serious discussions about replacing the law in recent years. 

Voters in the KFF survey were divided along party lines about which candidate they believe has a better approach to the future of the ACA, pollsters found; 9 in 10 Democratic voters said President Biden has a better approach, while 91 percent said the same for Trump. 

Fewer Republicans, however, believe the former president has a health care plan to replace it, with just 30 percent of voters in the party expressing that belief. 

Only about a fifth of voters said they think Biden played a major part in the passage of the ACA, which was signed into law when he was President Obama's vice president, the poll noted.

The survey was conducted from Jan. 30 to Feb. 7 online and by telephone among a nationally representative sample of 1,309 U.S. adults, including 1,055 registered voters. The margin of error is plus or minus 4 percentage points.