President Obama, seeking to revive sagging public support for his healthcare initiatives as lawmakers return from their summer recess, plans to deliver an address to a joint session of Congress on Sept. 9.
The president's address, which will draw national television coverage, is aimed at persuading a balky Congress and doubtful American public on the necessity of the healthcare overhaul that he is seeking by the end of the year.
Obama has underscored the core principles of his plans: insuring millions of Americans who lack healthcare coverage, improving coverage for those who have it and controlling the spiraling cost of healthcare for all, including the government. But the White House has allowed congressional leaders to negotiate the terms of the plan, with conservative Democrats and Republicans alike balking at some of what the president is proposing.
A slim majority, 51%, of those surveyed said they opposed Obama's "plan to reform health care," from everything they had heard of it, a CNN/Opinion Research poll taken over the weekend and released today found. And 48% said they supported it.
Among those with strong opinions, the survey shows, opposition is stronger, with 41% strongly opposing the president's plans and 25% strongly favoring them.
Interestingly, a majority -- 55% -- said they would support a public health insurance option administered by the federal government, which lately has become the most controversial and perhaps expendable part of the president's plans. Most -- 53% -- also said they thought Obama wanted the government to take over healthcare.
As things stand, more people -- 52% -- said the current healthcare system would make them feel more secure than those -- 44% -- who said Obama's plan would.
Most people surveyed (55%) said the plans the administration was working on would make them pay more for medical care. Just 1 in 5 said the plans would cut the cost of healthcare. Only 1 in 5 said their families would be better off under Obama's plans, with nearly 40% saying they would be worse off and 40% saying they would be about the same.
The survey of 1,010 adults was conducted Aug. 28 to 31 and carried a possible margin of error of 3 percentage points.
On cost containment, with estimates that the overhaul could cost $1 trillion over 10 years, Republicans have hammered Obama on the ballooning deficit. Doing more to lower costs would require cutting back the scope of the program, which could stir anguish among the president's liberal supporters.
On Medicare, proposals to offset new expenditures by curbing outlays for the program serving the elderly have spread panic among senior citizens. Strategists say Obama must find a way to still their anxieties.
On the creation of a government insurance plan to pressure private insurers to offer better deals, the GOP has charged that a government takeover of healthcare is in the works. White House officials are considering a "trigger," authorizing a government plan only if private insurers fail to offer more affordable coverage.
Obama's strategy carries major risks, however.
If he fails to move the opinion polls, his position could be seriously weakened.
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