The public has a substantial impact on healthcare policies. Primarily, public opinion has a high impact on the outcomes of elections and provides health policy agendas for those that want public offices. Therefore, public opinion affects government decision making by influencing the policy decisions by Congress. Whenever candidates vie for office, healthcare is one of the most significant things that voters want to be taken care of.
Public polling is a significant tool for policymaking and politics since it gives the public a voice within the political system, particularly to those who have none (Upadhyay, 2018) . Essentially, public polling sheds light on how guidelines affect individual’s lives. Nonetheless, public opinion does not convey to policymakers what is right but shows them where their stand is, and points out where training may be essential to help people comprehend their policy options (Upadhyay, 2018) .
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The article, Will Shift in Public Opinion on Healthcare Impact 2018? by Christine Stuart on Oct 15, 2018, shows A Morning Consult and Politico poll in September 2018. The survey designated that eighty-one percent of voters advocated for the prohibition of insurance companies to refute coverage to individuals with existing medical conditions. As a result, changes were made by president Trump’s administration, which influenced the insurance rates, offered by getting rid of the cost-sharing reduction (CSR) payments to insurers (Stuart, 2018). Typically, the insurance carriers were given about $50 million a year in cost-sharing reduction for 46,000 of the 98,000 exchange customers.
As such, it is evident that public opinion has a significant influence on the healthcare policy. For instance, the public has influenced the policy concerning healthcare insurance in the U.S. by implying that the insurers have to charge the same premium irrespective of their perceived health risks. In other words, according to the public, the government must ensure affordable health coverage instead of leaving it to the market forces. Due to these sentiments by the public, president Trump had no choice but to administer laws in favor of public opinion.
References
Stuart, C. (2018). Will Shift In Public Opinion On Healthcare Impact 2018? Retrieved from https://www.ctnewsjunkie.com/archives/entry/20181015_will_shift_in_public_opinion_on_healthcare_impact_2018/
Upadhyay, P. (2018). Public Opinion and Health Reform. Retrieved from https://ldi.upenn.edu/healthpolicysense/public-opinion-and-health-reform
